RWBY: Stars in the Night
by dark dhampir
Summary: Yang Xiao Long is a Huntress turned Vampire. Her sister, Ruby Rose is a slave to the Vampire Queen, Weiss Schnee. To get her back, Yang will do anything, even marry the evil queen. But, is Weiss her real enemy? Supernatural AU. Dark & Adult themes. Mostly White Rose/Pink Snow/Ice Flower and Bumblebee, little bit of Freezerburn. Other pairings to be announced.
1. Act 1: Chapter 1

**Author's Note: PLEASE DON'T SKIP! I'm sorry. I really want to finish the stuff I write BEFORE I move on to other stuff. Unfortunately, my imagination works faster than my fingers. I've wanted to do a Vampire/supernatural-themed RWBY story for ages, but I was never able to figure out how to do one that was able to harmonize with the existing RWBY mythos (Aura and Semblances are awesome, but they did make some Vampiric powers, like enhanced healing, seem redundant). At one point I did, but then I began to think that the story may or may not work better as a work of original fiction. Then, I found Shadowrun and the HMHVV. And, I rememberd something from my own past . . .**

 ** _IMPORTANT:_ This Fic was inspired by the story "Taken" by Rouge1979 (which was published before the movies came out and has nothing to do with them). It's a two-chapter Vampire-themed Yu-Gi-Oh! fic, and while the majority of the plot has nothing in common with this piece of crazy, the opening is more-or-less a direct lift. The story's pretty good, and I recommend it, if you're all right with a plot that gets pretty dark in some places.**

 **Fun Fact: This fic was supposed to be a Romance/Family story with a little bit of politicking and Angst thrown in. Unfortunately, in prepping for this fic, I'm starting to develop a pretty large mythology (admittedly one mostly cobbled together from other sources) that I really want to explore. So, this is looking like it's shaping up to be a pretty long story. Like all of them. _Sighhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh . . ._**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY. I do not own Shadowrun. I do not own Teen Wolf, or Underworld, or the Old World of Darkness, or anything else I use/abuse in the writing of this story. I only own this story. I hope that is enough**

* * *

 _Man, born from dust, was strong, wise, and resourceful._

 _But, he was born into an unforgiving world._

 _And creatures of darkness, Creatures of Grimm, set their sights on Man and all his creations_

 _These forces clashed . . ._

 _Nature's Wrath in hand, Man lit their way through the darkness._

 _And, in the Shadows' absence came Strength, Civilization, and-most importantly-Life._

 _But, the Shadows returned in new, more deadly forms:_

 _New creatures as terrifying as the Grimm, but stronger, wiser, and more resourceful . . ._

 _Creatures born of Man's own_ inner _darkness._

* * *

 **Act I: Shadows within Shadows**

 **Chapter 1—The Queen of Vale's Northern Night**

Weiss Schnee, called the Queen of Vale's Northern Night, held her court in a large, empty room in a secret compound located at the northernmost border of her territory. The room was bare but for the throne on which she sat, looking down on her assembled subjects. Pale-skinned, snowy-haired, and dressed in elegant white clothes, she looked like a ghost. But, she wasn't; she was as corporeal as the throne on which she sat or the russet-haired girl whose head and torso were draped across her lap. This girl was the only person present who lacked Weiss' unnatural paleness. Kneeling before her, the Queen's subjects might have had more diversity in their hair coloration, but their skin was just as chalky.

"The White Fang have become annoying lately," the Queen said. To her audience, she sounded something between bored and threatening. That was the idea. Never show yourself to be worried, always have those under you fear your wrath. And keep them guessing. Weiss had been trained for this since she could speak. The men and women before her were putty in her hands. "They seem to have forgotten that _I_ am the Master of the northern half of Vale. That is the only explanation I have for their current boldness. They've been attacking businesses and shipments many times over the past three weeks, and they've been . . . recruiting. We must remind them of their place _before_ the Hunters increase their presence in our home."

Weiss put the tiniest emphasis to her words, a subtle promise of punishment for failure. Watching her subjects squirm, the Queen of Vale's Northern Night knew they were sufficiently motivated. Especially as she had changed her speech from a demand to protect her domain to a call to protect their home. Weiss had found out long ago that you caught all the flies if you employed both honey _and_ vinegar. To seal the deal, she deliberately flashed her fangs as she spoke her final line. "Now, go, my loyal soldiers."

The Vampires before her rose and slowly filed out. "Yang," she said. A tall female with long, blond hair paused and turned to look back at her. She didn't give Weiss the look of respect or fear that more of her subjects gave her. No, the look this Vampiress gave Weiss was one of pure disdain. Yet, Weiss's voice carried an almost affectionate lilt as she spoke to the blond. "Wait a moment, my dear."

Yang frowned and crossed her arms. "What is it?" she asked. The two were alone, so there was no more reason to even pretend to respect the woman before her.

Weiss smirked. "Now, now, Yang. You know I can't let you speak to me like that. _If the others heard,_ it might give them ideas."

Yang frowned. Still very new to her condition, she had clearly forgotten to take into account the advanced senses of their kind. "I'm sorry," she said.

Weiss' smirk increased. It wasn't much, but the white-haired queen knew it was all she was getting from the blonde. Besides, she could afford to give Yang a little slack, given their . . . "relationship." "Thank you, very much, my dear. As you know, our bonding is set to occur in four months' time."

Yang nodded. She probably couldn't say anything that wouldn't require punishment.

Weiss continued. "You've proven yourself to be an outstanding member of our coven over the past thirteen—no, forgive me, fourteen months. Rarely has a fledgling adapted to the change as quickly as you have, and you've distinguished yourself on the battlefield a number of times." Weiss paused to stroke her pet's hair. "As to be expected from such a prodigious Huntress-in-training." Her keen ears could hear Yang's quiet growl, but she knew none of the others were close enough to do so, so she let it slide. Idly, she wondered if the growl was brought on by her comment or her action.

"Unfortunately, you haven't fully adjusted to our ways. You've displayed amazing control over your instincts; I don't think a single one of your comrades has reported you attempting to kill or sire a mortal without permission. Awe inspiring for one so young."

"Thank you," Yang said. Giving that reply seemed more painful than pulling teeth; Weiss acted as though she hadn't said anything.

"Sadly, it seems some of your brethren do not understand this. They've begun to whisper among themselves that you are too compassionate, 'weak,' in their minds. Why, a few have even dared to insinuate as much in my very presence." She paused and ruffled the russet hair in her lap once more. "Or Ruby's presence, but then, that's practically the same thing isn't it?"

Yang's growl was louder this time, but the blonde was able to disguise the target of her fury. "Aren't your orders to refrain from unnecessary killing and siring, Mistress?"

"But of course, dear Yang!" Weiss said, smiling widely now, like a teacher when her prized student figured something out before the rest of the class. "As I said, these are the opinions of others, those who are jealous of your power, and my favor, my little sun dragon. I could not be prouder of you."

Yang clenched her fists, but didn't reply to Weiss' comment or the use of her name's translation as an affectionate. "If any of them thinks I'm weak, they can tell me themselves. I'll show them who's weak."

Weiss _tsk_ -ed her. "Please, dear Yang, you must become more adept at politics if you are to become my bride. Being challenged in this way undermines your authority. No matter how many you defeat, more will come. You must learn to defuse such rumors before they have a chance to inspire rebellion in the hearts of those beneath you. All of which leads us to another, related issue. You've yet to take a slave for yourself."

"I don't need one," Yang said. Immediately.

"It's not a matter of need, Yang," Weiss said. "It's a matter of status. Not having a slave makes you stand out amongst your fellows. True, you're younger than them, but you are a mature Vampiress. You're like a Huntress without a weapon, and, until you get one, you won't be respected by your peers."

Yang scowled. "Is that an order, Mistress?"

"Yes," Weiss said. "I expect you to acquire a slave—human or faunus, I don't care—before our wedding. Sooner would be better, of course, but I don't expect you to rush into a new relationship over me. Your slave will reflect on you, so he or she must be of the highest quality. Besides," the icy queen smiled sweetly. "I'm sure you'd only want the best to be Ruby's new sister; someone to keep her company while we're otherwise occupied."

Yang looked as though she was going to scream. Her eyes turned red, and her flaming aura flared, filling the room. It blazed like a miniature sun, and, for a moment, Weiss feared she'd pushed the blond too far. Then, Ruby raised her head and looked her sister in the eye. Weiss could practically feel the girl's smile: warmer than Yang's aura, yet nowhere near as hot.

Seeing it, Yang's aura retreated into her; her eyes returned to their usual lavender. "All right," she said. "I'll do it, for Ruby."

"Not for me?" Weiss asked, with fake hurt. For emphasis, she placed her hand on her (unbeating) heart.

"And for you." Yang gritted he teeth. "My love."

"Then I've kept you from your duties long enough. Go, dearest Yang, and know that we both await your return with baited breath."

Yang nodded. Then smiled at Ruby, giving her sister a little wave before leaving. Really, she should have bowed, but again, Weiss knew she had to take what she could get with the blond. Besides, it wasn't like Vampire hearing was keen enough to detect the difference between a nod and a bow, so—as there was no one present to _see_ Yang's lack of respect—it didn't really matter.

After a few moments, when she was certain Yang was too far to hear them, Ruby rose from her position beside Weiss' throne. "My knees hurt," she whined, before seating herself in her mistress' lap.

"I already gave you a pillow," Weiss replied, her arms wrapping themselves around the girl's waist. Ruby used hers to gently encircle Weiss' neck. This brought her face close to Weiss', and she leaned forward to rub her cheek against the Vampiress.

"Maybe I should attend meetings like this from now on," Ruby suggested.

"You dunce, what would my subjects think of that?" Weiss asked. Vampires didn't blush, but Weiss still felt her face heat up as it tried to.

"They'd think 'Wow, that Weiss is a lucky girl."

"Dolt; I'm Master Vampire, not a girl."

"We both know better than that, Princess." Weiss chose not to respond to that one, causing Ruby's smile to widen for an instant. Then it fell. She pulled back to look Weiss in the eye. "Weiss," she asked "did you have to be so hard on her?"

"You know I did, Ruby," Weiss replied, gently. They were alone; no one could see her or judge her. See this moment of tenderness. Judge Ruby to be her weakness. "Only the strong and hard can survive in this den of wolves. Yang is strong, but she must become harder, much harder."

Ruby sighed, looking down. "Yeah, I just wish she didn't have to be. I wish I could be your bride, Weiss."

One of Weiss's hands rose to cup Ruby's chin, gently raising the girl's face. "Ruby Rose, there is nothing that would please me more than to be your wife. But we both know, you're even less-suited to life as a Vampire than Yang is." Ruby sighed again, but nodded. They'd had this conversation before. Weiss smiled at her. "Know this, though, Ruby: while the others may see me pledge myself to Yang, in my heart, I'll be saying those words to you."

Ruby's smile returned full force at this, accompanied by a scarlet blush. They both made Weiss's frozen heart melt. Then, the girl made it soar as she leaned forward and kissed Weiss. The two remained like that for brief eternity. Too brief.

Ruby felt her lungs begin to cry for air and—reluctantly—pulled back. Her smile dimmed slightly, the most it could after a moment like that, and she spoke again. "I hope Yang finds someone to love."

"It's not very common for Vampires to love their slaves," Weiss reminded her, as delicately as she could.

"You love me," Ruby reminded her.

"That I do."

"Coco and Fox love Velvet and Yatsuhashi."

"Coco and Fox care for them, but I'm not certain they love them."

"Do you have to be so dark?"

"It comes with the territory. I'm a creature of the night, Ruby, but that's why I love you; you bring the sunshine into my life."

"Not literally, I hope." Ruby frowned. "That would be bad."

Weiss laughed, for a moment, not caring if anyone heard. "Indeed, it would. Now come, my slave," she said, scooping Ruby up and re-positioning the girl so she was being carried bridal-style, rather difficult given their current position, but Weiss had had a lot of practice. "We have better places to be."

"Bed?" Ruby asked, blushing heavily now. More than two years with Weiss, and yet she was still embarrassed to admit to being intimate with her.

"No," Weiss replied. "The gym; it should be abandoned right now." The Queen of Vale's Northern Night's smile increased as she saw her slave's grin, brighter than any star in the dark skies outside their compound. To keep that smile on her face, Weiss prayed that Yang would find someone who would make the blond smile, too. _"Then,_ bed."

* * *

 **Lexicon: Vampire Covens & Masters**

Vampires are urban predators; in modern nights, they live almost exclusively in the four main city-states of the Four Kingdoms. Being social creatures, Vampires tend to band together in groups called "covens." Being ambitious, predatory creatures, these groups tend to excerise exclusive control over large swathes of territory, banning unaligned Vampires from their spheres of influence. Covens are ruled by a Master (male or female), the most powerful Vampire in the coven. The Master's word is law.

 **Hunters**

Mortals trained in the arts of armed and Aura-based combat to do battle with the many dangers of Remnant: Creatures of Grimm, Aura-using criminals, and Vrykolakae. Their creed is "We hunt those who hunt us." Prospective Huntsmen and Huntresses begin intense training at an early age, attending various academies set up and funded by the ruling councils of the Kingdoms to train their future protectors. By the time they graduate (assuming they do), young Hunters are among the deadliest and most respected warriors on the planet. Hunters are often regarded as real-life super heroes, and feature heavily in the art and stories of Remnant.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Hey, all! Like it? I hope I didn't make you hate Weiss, although as this story is expected to spend a lot of time in Yang's POV, that might be unavoidable. Weiss is definitely playing a shifty game with her subjects and . . . _someone._ Who? I'm not gonna tell you in a Footnote to Chapter1! Just take comfort in the fact that she's not pure evil or a Puppetmaster Dumbledore-style character. Those are the _last_ things I want to make her. That said, this story is gonna get kind of dark by necessity. You are warned. **


	2. Act 1: Chapter 2

**Author's Notes: HA! Bet you weren't expecting an update the same day as I publish the first chapter, huh? Well, I didn't want to wait to start developing Yang's side of the story, since she is the protagonist ( at least for Act I). I also wanted to start fleshing out the story's internal mythology.**

 **Disclaimer: Most of the Vampire mythology for this story is stolen from _Shadowrun_ (I just _love_ the idea of the MHMVV). A little is also taken from _Vampire the Masquerade/Requiem_ (it's an element of both games, you'll know it when you see it). I already said I don't own either of them. **

* * *

**Act I: Shadows within Shadows**

 **Chapter 2—The Fallen Huntress**

Remnant's broken moon hung over Vale, illuminating the fog that shrouded the city-state. From her perch on a rooftop, Yang Xiao Long frowned. It was almost full. Dangerous for mortals. Dangerous for monsters.

The Human/Faunus-Metamorphic Vampiric Virus (HFMVV) affected different races in different ways. They became monsters, creatures known as "Metabeings,"but the difference between the virus' effect on a Human and the effect it had on a Faunus was so different, it was hard to believe the new creatures were spawned from the same micro-organism. Humans became Vampires, undead blood-drinkers. Faunus, on the other hand, were transformed into Werebeasts. Most of this second race lost control of themselves as the Moon grew, with the full Moon reducing any afflicted Faunus to a mindless savage that would attack anything that moved, little more than a Grimm. Yang shuddered at the thought; as much as she hated being a Vampiress, she was thankful she didn't have to go through that.

The results of this were that Huntsmen and Huntresses tended to patrol more heavily on nights of the full moon, in order to protect the common citizenry from attack. This tradition had become lax in recent years as most surviving Werebeasts took to living outside the protection of the Kingdoms or else locking themselves in quieted, safe-rooms when the full moon rolled around so there was less need for intense, monthly hunts. That wasn't to say they had stopped, however. That would have been beyond foolish, so Yang would have to be careful if she didn't want one of her former allies spotting her. As much as the blond hated her current existence, she wasn't ready to give it up, not as long as Ruby still needed her. That was why Yang continued to fight so hard in spite of her condition, for her sister's sake.

With that thought encouraging her, Yang leaped from her perch into the fog below. This was a trick she'd needed some effort to master, but now that she had, she would admit it was one of the handier parts of Vampirsm. Folklore assigned a wide array of powers. In truth, the Vampires' universally held powers were pretty limited, albeit still useful: enhanced aura capacity immunity to age, poison, and disease; and sharper senses, for example. One of the stranger gifts, though was the ability to merge with one's environment. Yang used this power now, becoming a ghostly figure floating within the mist.

Yang felt her head pound. It took a great effort of will to adopt this form and maintain it (the Vampire's molecules wanted to condense back into a solid and reject the mist), and it was pretty limited. More powerful Vampires could disappear into shadows or become one with the earth beneath them. Yang, however, wasn't that advanced, so she was limited by the presence of mist. Still, it allowed her to travel quickly and quietly over the city.

Given the amount of willpower needed to maintain this form, one would think it would be difficult to think of anything else while in it. Unfortunately, Yang's mind had always found multitasking easy, and it couldn't help but wander. She thought back to _that night._ The night the stars had gone out. The night her life as a Huntress had ended. She remembered the pain in her neck and the blood on her lips. Remembered Ruby . . .

 _"_ _RRRRRRRRRARR-RRARR!"_

Yang's mind returned to the present at the sound. That was not the sound of any mundane animal. Yang turned; although her body was now partially fog, it still seemed to function the way it did when she was totally solid. To her right, she saw several figures leaping across the rooftops. _Now that,_ she thought, _looks like a party._ The rooftops were above the fog, so the blond-haired Vampire couldn't fly to them. Plan B, then. If anyone could see Yang's translucent, semi-solid form in the mists, they would have seen her lips curve into a smile. Yang _loved_ Plan B.

The Mist might not extend to the figures' height, but Yang could travel below them. The Vampiress' ghostly form flew closer to the group, then stopped. Yang almost fell, awestruck by the sight before her.

The person at the head of the pack was a dark-haired young woman wearing a form-fitting black and white outfit. She was holding a kind of double weapon in her hands. One held a black, thin-bladed sword with a ribbon on the end, while the other was holding a wide, cleaver-thing. A small, black bow was perched on the top of her head, so out of place with her utilitarian, borderline militaristic appearance. As she leapt across a street, the woman flipped and opened fire on her pursuers; turns out, her sword's hilt contained a built-in pistol. She then landed on the opposing rooftop without breaking her stride. Yang got a brief look at the woman's face as she landed; she was gorgeous.

Yang's amazement was cut short, however, as the woman's victims recovered. They were all Faunus, Yang realized. Correction: they _were_ all Faunus, once. Watching their muscles swell; their horns, fangs, and claws lengthen; fur erupt all over their bodies, Yang knew they were as mortal as she was. She didn't even need the signature black outfits with white armor and masks (most of which had been deformed by the transformation process, anyway) to identify them. These were the White Fang.

The White Fang had once been a peaceful organization, founded for the protection and promotion of the rights of all Faunus. Being a minority on Remnant, the race had faced much persecution over the course of their history from humanity. About twelve years ago, things changed. Rumors said the Fang fell under new leadership. Yang didn't know if that was true and didn't care. The new White Fang were terrorists; they stole, vandalized, and murdered seemingly without rhyme or reason. They claimed they were still out for Faunus rights, but the Faunus didn't particularly care for them anymore. Worse, there were rumors that the Fang were actively turning some of their agents into Werebeasts. As Yang had learned shortly after her own induction into the Vampire clan, those rumors were all to true.

Unlike most Werebeasts, the Fang seemed to have developed a way to control themselves during the full moon—or any other time of the month. For centuries, Vampires had ruled the night in the Kingdoms because they had complete control over themselves and their abilities. Werebeasts often lived in the settlements and villages outside the central city-states. More exposed to Grimm, but less likely to be discovered by Huntsmen and Huntresses. After all, it was hard to hide out in a city when you turned into a howling, rampaging monster three or more nights a month. And it was hard to compete with Vampires when, the closer to the new moon you got, the more mundane you became.

But the White Fang had changed the rules, developing a means to control their transformations perfectly, which allowed them to take over the Southern half of Vale and rule it like Vampires. In fact, they had actually slain the southern clan's Master and massacred a majority of the coven along with him. No one was sure how the Fang were doing it, but no one could argue their effectiveness of their methods. That was why Weiss had prioritized keeping them out of her territory.

The raven-haired woman being pursued was a skilled warrior, possibly a Huntress even, but no mortal could hope to survive this many Werebeasts. Time to kill two birds with one stone: save the girl and score points with the boss. And look cool doing it, of course.

Yang materialized within the fog, falling rapidly. Any other time she would have savored the adrenaline rush, but now was not the time. The fallen Huntress activated the mechanisms within her golden bangles. The bright, heavy jewelry expanded up the length of her arms, becoming the Ember Celica, a weapon as wild and deadly as Yang Xiao Long herself.

Yang waited until the last possible moment, then fired two shots at the ground. The resulting explosions rocketed her back into the air, until she was floating just _above_ the rooftop the woman was engaging the Werebeasts on. For a single moment, mortal and monster stopped and looked up at the sight of the amazing, flying blond woman. Yang gave them a wink. Always play to the audience, even when you're planning to kill them.

The blond wasted no time in opening a barrage of fire on the assembled creatures. Literally. The only type of Dust ammunition Yang used was Burn Dust. It was amazingly destructive and, for all their advantages, most monsters—Meta-beings or Creatures of Grimm—seemed just as vulnerable to fire as regular people. Werebeasts had a special vulnerability to the substance: their fur was flammable. As a result, by the time Yang landed beside the mystery woman, she had already either killed or incapacitated several enemies and caused _severe_ pain to most of the ones she hadn't. Unfortunately, about seven or eight were still standing, many of whom were now very angry with her.

"Now'd be a good time to run!" she announced, she cried, banging her knuckles together loudly. Sparing a glance over her shoulder, she winked again, this time at the Werebeast's victim. The woman regarded her carefully, apparently not quite getting the message.

Meanwhile, a bulky Werebear volunteered to actually face the fallen Huntress, charging right at the pair. Yang responded in kind, barreling into him with her super-charged Vampiric aura.

 _"_ _UUUUUURRRRRRR!"_ the monster cried, as Yang's fist connected with his gut, knocking the wind out of him. The brawler wasted no time in pressing her advantage. She followed with a series of punches to the same area. The White Fang Meta-being tried to counter with his own mighty arms, but Yang easily kicked them away. Yang jumped back just enough to leap forward again with another devastating punch to the midsection, causing her opponent—victim, really—to double over in pain. Sensing that she had succeeded in piercing the monster's aura, Yang released one last punch against him: a destructive uppercut to the chin, combined with a well-timed shot from Ember Celica. The poor fool never had a chance.

Enraged, another trio of infected Faunus leapt at her. A Werelion, -boar, and -wolf. Yang smirked at their poorly-chosen strategy, and pulled her arm back to launch a counterattack. She never got the chance to use it.

 _Something,_ black and spinning, flew through the air, slicing through all three monsters. Each one was severed with a loud _Bang!_ that confused Yang, until the last one was bisected. Then, she saw the object fire a single shot to send it spinning backwards into the outstretched hand of the dark-haired woman Yang had been trying to save.

The woman caught her weapon in her hand, while Yang caught her breath in her throat. Standing there, illuminated by the Moon behind her, the woman looked even more exotic and beautiful. Yang saw her elegant features: her smooth, pale skin; her silky hair that danced in the wind; and her shining, golden eyes. The woman must have been a Faunus herself, Yang thought. No human had eyes like that, and the agility she had displayed earlier . . .

The mysterious woman seemed uninterested in Yang's adolescent gawking. She opened the flying weapon she held, revealing it to be a collapsed version of her sword and leaped into the fray, entering into a duel with a Werehyena. The ravenette danced away from the Werebeast's claws, slashing, blocking, and parrying with both weapons. It was an impressive display, but it also served as a reminder to Yang that their battle wasn't over.

The brawler narrowly avoided the strike of a female antlered Werebeast holding an axe. Another nuisance about the White Fang was that they maintained enough intelligence and control in their transformed states that some of them could still use weapons in it. Those of a more predatory mien still preferred to use their claws, but many others now carried man-made weapons into battle alongside their natural ones.

The antlered Werebeast, for example, reversed her grip on the axe, then aimed the bottom of the handle in Yang's direction. _Gun mode,_ Yang realized. She drew her arms together into a guard as the infected Faunus opened fire on her. The blast pushed Yang back several feet. She felt her heel extend beyond the edge of the roof. _Wow, Ruby would've like that,_ Yang thought. Immediately, a burst of sadness crashed into her, like a wave striking a sand castle.

 _"_ _Oook!"_ The next thing the brawler knew, she was flying backwards, yanked—or rather, _Yang-_ ked—by a black ribbon tied around her waist. The spot where she had been standing exploded, and Yang landed on her butt beside the woman whom she'd been trying to save. Who had just saved her.

"Thanks," Yang said. Once again, she was struck by just how amazing this woman was. Not only was she beautiful, she'd managed to defeat her own opponent and still have time to save Yang. _Which she wouldn't need to do if you kept your head out of the clouds,_ the brawler reminded herself. _Stay focused, girl!_

"You're welcome," the woman whispered. If Yang didn't have Vampiric super-hearing, she probably wouldn't have heard it. The woman's voice was so soft, but there was something else. She looked: sad? Shocked? Something else? Yang opened her mouth to ask, but before she could say a word, the woman spoke again. "Look out!"

The pair jumped back as the antlered Meta-being crashed down on the place where they had been with her axe. Yang let out a fired repeatedly, sending a flurry of fireballs at the monster. Her foe jumped up, but the brawler's new partner was ready for her. The golden-eyed woman through her weapon (collapsed into its chain-scythe form again) and caught the leaping Werebeast by the ankle. Amazingly, she managed to pull the powerful beast back down to the rooftop.

Neither landed gracefully, Yang's ally was thrown to her side by the impact, but that was all right. The Meta-being had taken the worse fall, and Yang was waiting for her. It went against the brawler's remaining human instincts to attack an opponent while she was down. It was foul, rotten even, and made her feel more like a thug than a Huntress.

But, she'd been a Vampire for years now. She was quite accustomed to feeling and fighting dirty.

The antlered Werebeast fell backwards, shifting back to her normal Faunus form, minus the fact that her face was now a smoking mess. Yang tried not to think about that. Looking around, she could see the remaining White Fang agents had already fled. _Cowards._ Even when they still held the advantage of numbers, they'd abandoned one of their own to face the enemy pair. Speaking of which, Yang and the woman turned to face each other. The woman now held her weapon in a loose grip: not putting it away but not advertising a desire to turn on her.

 _Fair enough._ Yang decided not to deactivate Ember Celica, but held her hands at her sides, flashing the woman her biggest and most charming smile. Hopefully, her fangs were still small. "Well, that was a thing," she said. _Come on, Yang, you can do better than that. Wait? Why do I want to do better than that? I'm a Vampire, and she's . . ._ a Huntress? A mercenary. Clearly a warrior. Yang didn't know why this woman wasn't attacking her, but she should just count her blessings, jump back into the fog, and mist-form the Dust out of—

 _BANG!_

Yang watched as the woman before her clutched her side before collapsing. Yang turned and saw a man, just at the edge of her enhanced vision packing up what appeared to be a sniper rifle, then fleeing into the night. Yang saw red; she clenched her fists. She bent her knees to chase after the SCUM who would dare—

 _"_ _Ahhh!"_

The blond brawler became aware of the quiet whimpering coming from the fallen warrior woman. She was clutching her side, trying to staunch the flow of blood. Her aura must have been depleted by the fight, but even if it wasn't, she would have been in trouble. Bullets were rare in Remnant they weren't much good against Grimm or Meta-beings and didn't give you the variety Dust ammo had, but against a mortal, they did a lot of damage. Once inflicted, not many could heal such a grievous wound.

"Hold on," Yang said. As gently as she could, lifted the injured woman into her arms.

 _"_ _AH-AHhhhhh!"_

Yang cringed at the beautiful warrior's cries. She tried to smile at her. "It's all right. I'll take you to the hospital."

 _"_ _N-no!"_ the woman choked.

"What?" Yang asked. Was she delusional? "You'll die if you don't get help."

 _"_ _I-I'll die . . . if-ff I go . . ."_

Yang wanted to ask what she meant, when she saw the injured woman release a little pressure on her wound. The blond brawler wanted to yell at the ravenette, but she couldn't. She was too surprised at the sight of little trails of smoke emitting from the wound. Yang leaned down, inhaling a deep breath of the woman's scent. She hadn't noticed it earlier, surrounded as they were by Werebeasts, but she noticed it now. Grimm and Dust did she notice it now.

"You're . . . like them?"

* * *

 **Lexicon: HFMVV**

The Human /Faunus Metamorphic Virus is one of the stranger elements of Remnant. Essentially, it is a disease capable of rewriting the genetics of those whom it infects, whom are collectively called Meta-beings, Metas, or "Vrykolakae" (sing. "Vrykolakas"). There are several Strains of this virus, and it seems to have vastly different effects on its victims depending on whether they are human or Faunus. Strain I, the most common variation of the disease, causes Humans to become Vampires and Faunus become Werebeasts. There are several other, less common species born of other Strains of the disease, but a common feature is that, unlike Grimm, all Meta-beings have an Aura. They may even have a Semblance although, if they were trained in its use prior to infection, they may find it has undergone certain cosmetic differences as a result of the change. Regardless, the mere possession of an Aura proves that Metas, unlike Grimm, possess souls. This does not change the fact that the standing orders of Huntsmen and Huntresses in regards to Vrykolake is "Kill on sight."

 **The White Fang**

The White Fang was founded shortly after the Faunus Rebellion (A.K.A. The Faunus Wars) as a group meant to champion the rights of the numerically inferior Faunus and to protest Human discriminations against the race. Their ultimate goal was equality and harmony between Humans and Faunus. The organization grew in size and popularity amongst the Faunus, but achieved only minor success in its aims. roughly ten years ago, the organization came under new leadership. These new leaders had a more radical vision: exposing the use of violence to achieve its aims against anyone and everyone seen as enemies of the Faunus race. Numerous accounts of property damage and assassination have been attributed to the Fang since then, and they are currently considered the most sought-after criminal enterprise in Remnant.

* * *

 **DUN, DUN, DUUUUUUUUUN! OK, you were all probably expecting Blake to be a Were, but Yang wasn't. Let's see where this goes.**

 **Also, question: Regarding the Lexicon note that a Vrykolakas' Semblance undergoes certain changes as a result of the transformation. In canon, Semblances are described as tangible manifestations of Aura, and Aura is supposedly a manifestation of the soul. So, can Aura and Semblance change in the show? I mean, in Harry Potter, a Patronus, which was also a representation of a person's inmost self, could change if a person underwent a significant life-changing event. So, shouldn't the same hold true for Aura and/or Semblance. Just a thought.**


	3. Act 1: Chapter 3

**Author's Notes: If you have previously read the past two chapters, turn back and read them again. I've decided to include a "Lexicon" feature at the end of Chapters to explain the lore of this AU. I won't be doing this EVERY chapter, just explaining things as they arise so that I can share what I've developed without bogging down the story in exposition or having characters discuss things they should already know. Or, at least without doing these things too much.**

 **Additionally, the footnotes may or may not at times contain information that will become important later on in the story. So, I would advise reading them to be sure you don't miss anything. Besides, they make the world richer, kind of like the "World of Remnant" videos.**

* * *

 **Act 1: Shadows within Shadows**

 **Chapter 3—Complications and Second Chances**

"What—what is _she_ doing here?" Violet asked. The Vampiress had served as the coven's medic for almost sixty years and had seen many strange things, but this was a new one. A Werebeast? In the Vampires' lair? And being carried bridal-style by perhaps the most infamous member of the coven? She probably would have used harsher words, if a red-eyed Yang hadn't been the one holding the medical wing's new arrival.

"There's a silver bullet in her side. It needs to come out, _now!"_ When the medic looked like she was going to protest, Yang repeated herself. " _NOW!"_

Violet took one look at the former Huntress' bared fangs and nodded. "Place her on the table. Saffron, bring me my tools." A dark-haired human male—the medic's slave—stepped forward carrying a tray of medical instruments. The Vampiress examined the wound. She wrinkled her nose at the scent of burning Werebeast flesh. "No time for anesthetics," she muttered, ripping the infected Faunus' shirt open. "Hold her," she instructed. Once Yang had secured their patient, Violet cut into the open wound with her scalpel.

 _"_ _AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"_

"Hang on," Yang told her, trying to keep the struggling woman still. "Just hold on."

The Vampire medic, meanwhile, set her scalpel aside and picked up a pair of forceps. The Werebeast screamed even louder but—"Got it," Violet said, holding the smoking lump of silver-coated lead in her tool's prongs. She hastily deposited it in a container her slave/assistant held. It was labeled "MEDICAL WASTE. HIGHLY DANGEROUS." Yang allowed herself a slight shiver at the sight: silver was almost as bad for Vampires as it was for Weres, the main reason she hadn't tried to remove the bullet herself. The brawler doubted she could even get a hold of the toxic bullet.

Violet tried to clean and bandage the wound, but had little success. The flesh surrounding the slug had suffered terribly. Much of it was horribly burnt, and some had even begun to rot. "She's in bad shape," the medic said, carefully placing her wasted supplies into the container.

"Do something," Yang ordered.

"What do you expect me to do? I can't just hand her a pack of blood and tell her to drink it like one of our kind, and she's no longer truly a Faunus, so my normal drugs won't work on her!" Violet was having a hard time controlling herself. There were two other healers in the coven; why did _she_ have to be the one to deal with this? And, why did this Vampiress-a former _Huntress,_ no less-want to save a Were?

"What about Vampire blood?" Yang asked. "It heals other Vamps, right? Why not a Were? We both have MFHVV. Same Strain even."

"Maybe," the medic conceded. "It would take a lot of blood, though, and even then I'm not sure . . ."

She wasn't but Yang certainly was. The blond hastily removed one of the Ember Celica gauntlets and sank her fangs deep into her exposed wrist. It hurt like nothing else, worse than the time a squirrel had bitten her as a child, but Yang didn't slow down, ripping open a pair of huge gauges in her arm. She propped the injured woman's head up with her good hand and brought her injured limb up to the woman's mouth. "Drink it," she urged. "Come on."

Either because the woman heard her or due to some kind of Vyrkolakas instinct, the infected Faunus began to drink the offered liquid.

Saffron returned and almost tripped over himself in shock. He mouthed a question to his mistress, who shook her head. "Get her a blood pack. I don't know what this is about, but the Mistress will have my head if I let her fiancé die."

"Not your head, but perhaps one of your legs." Violet whipped around to see Weiss standing in the medical ward's entrance. "I need your head so that we can continue using your vast supply of medical knowledge."

Accompanying the white-haired Queen was—of course—her own slave, Ruby, and her usual guard. There was the Vampiric fashion maven, Coco, dressed better than you would expect a high-level soldier to be, but everyone in the coven had heard stories of what she could do, with or without that seemingly over-priced handbag she held. Beside Coco was her mate, Fox. Fox was one of the few Vampires to be afflicted any sort of handicap, having been born blind. when he was Human. The muscled arms his sleeveless vest showed off and the multiple scars adorning them showed that birth defect had had little effect on his abilities as a warrior. His forearms were covered by bladed gauntlets that had seen him through countless battles. Beside them were their slaves, Yatsuhashi and Velvet. Yatsuhashi was seven feet even, dwarfing a number of his fellow slaves and their undead masters. Strapped to his back was a long, curved sword. Velvet was a rabbit-eared Faunus with long, brown hair and a cute, innocent face. A small, wooden box was attached to her waist. Because of their masters' positions they were the only slaves permitted to carry weapons.

"Mistress Weiss." Violet acknowledged her liege with a bow. Behind her, Saffron hung his head and tried to look unimportant. "What brings you here?"

Weiss was examining Yang, who was gently placing the Werebeast's head down on the pallet. The injured Metabeing's breathing had stabilized; she appeared to be sleeping as the Vampiric blood did its work. "I heard my future Bondmate was running through the compound carrying a Werebeast. I don't care much for rumors, but I thought this one worth looking into. Apparently, I was right."

"It _is_ highly unusual, Mistress," Violet said, hesitantly. She cringed when Weiss turned an eye to her, her brow raised.

"Is that judgment I hear in your tone, Violet?" she asked.

"No Mistress!" The medic's reply was instantaneous. "It's just . . . I don't think I've ever seen a Vampire bring a Werebeast to the ward before. I'm curious as to what it's about. If I may be, that is."

"Well, I suppose it _will_ be announced eventually," Weiss said, teasingly. Those who knew her knew her next words would not be easy to swallow, but nothing could have prepared them for what the Queen of Vale's Northern Night said next. "I would say congratulations are in order, Violet, you are the first of our coven to see my dear Yang's new slave."

"WHAT?" The blond brawler's outcry drew everyone's attention to her.

"Please, my dear. Don't you know what it is you've just done? It's true that feeding Vampire blood to another Vrykolakas will heal their injuries, but it will also create a temporary bond between the pair. That _is_ after all, a major component of the Bonding ritual."

Yang clenched her fists, but didn't say a word. She _did_ know that. That was one of the first things she'd been taught after being "adopted" into this glorified street gang. After all, it wouldn't do for young Vampires to go around binding one another right, left, and center. But no one had told her it worked that way with all Metabeings!

 _I should have known,_ she realized. The blond would have growled if she didn't know that would likely be seen as a challenge to Weiss and that . . . would not go over well. _I was gambling that my blood could heal her like she was a Vampire, I should have realized-should have_ thought- _the other stuff was true, too._

Weiss continued. "That one is yours now, dearest Yang. A fine catch, I'd say, to have survived such an incident. And, a former White Fang, no less. I'm sure she has a wealth of information for us."

"A former . . .?" Yang's mouth went dry. She looked down at the girl on the table. She was dressed in white and black, but not in the armor or hood of the Fang. She couldn't be . . . Besides, the White Fang had tried to kill her!

"A silver bullet to the belly," Weiss noted. "That's the Fang's favorite punishment for betrayal. I'm looking forward to hearing your report, my love. I'm certain it will be quite interesting."

Yang struggled to find an answer. She wanted to deny it. To yell and scream. To punch this sweet-talking _bitch_ in the face. But, she saw Ruby, hidden from Violet's view by Weiss shake her head. Quickly. Yang ground her teeth, but kept her cool. "I was patrolling the border as you ask—instructed. I saw this woman being chased by a gang of bad guys on rooftops. I went to investigate and discovered the pursuers were all White Fang Werebeasts. I didn't realize she was one too, because her scent was blocked by their's. Together, we killed or drove away her pursuers. Then a sniper shot her from a distance. That was when I realized she was a Werebeast. I couldn't take her to a hospital, so I brought her here."

"How many did you kill, together?" Weiss asked.

"At least six," Yang replied. "She killed most of them. Destroyed three of them at once with her crazy weapon." Yang pulled the object off her back and offered it to Weiss.

Coco took it, examining the weapon and its ammo carefully. "The blade is silver-tipped, but the ammo is normal Dust rounds."

"I doubt the White Fang lets traitors keep silver bullets," Yang snarked.

"The sheath is designed to act as an edged weapon, not as good at cutting as the sword, but good for blocking and counter-attacks," Coco continued. She flicked a switch, and the sword collapsed. "A scythe-mode _and_ a built-in pistol." The Vampiress sounded impressed. Behind her, Ruby was drooling as she ogled the weapon. "This may be one of the most over-designed things I've ever seen, but I can't argue with the results."

Fox and Yatsuhashi nodded in respect while Ruby gave her sister a thumbs-up.

Weiss spoke again. "Indeed. Well done, Yang. You've recruited a powerful ally to our cause and won an important victory against our enemy. Did any survive?"

"Two. Maybe three of them," Yang admitted.

"They will have quite the tale to tell their masters," Weiss mused.

"Hopefully, it'll teach them to stay out of our territory," Coco said, sheathing the un-collapsed sword.

"We have nothing if not our dreams," Weiss said. "Still, we had best plan for a more negative outcome. Let us confer with the others. Coco, bring that weapon with us. Should her new slave prove trustworhty, Yang can retrieve it when her new slave recovers—presuming the Were is proven trustworthy, of course. And you, my love, I'd suggest you stay and become properly acquainted with your new slave."

Yang bowed. "Of course . . . Mistress."

Weiss nodded back. "I'll leave you to your work, Violet." With that, the Vampiress turned and strode out of the ward, followed by her attendants.

Yang sighed and turned back to the woman sleeping on the medical table. She was vaguely aware that Violet was speaking to Saffron, giving him some kind of instructions. "Who are you?" she asked.

* * *

Blake blinked her eyes open. She felt a dull ache in her side, and her back was stiff, as if she'd been sleeping on the ground.

"You're awake." Blake turned to her side and saw a mane of wavy blond hair surrounding a lovely face with a pair of lavender-colored eyes framed by thick, blond hair. Smiling, the blond called, "Violet, she's awake! Come do your thing!"

Blake's memories came back: the chase, the battle with her former brothers and sisters, the appearance of the beautiful yet wild Vampiress beside her, and, of course, being shot when she'd foolishly let her guard down. _Did this Vampire save me?_ She wondered. Why? Then again, why had she helped Blake during the fight at all? And, why had Blake accepted that help?

"About time," a new voice said. Blake saw a purple-haired woman coming towards her, dressed in a white apron and wearing medical gloves and sporting a slight scowl. This must be "Violet." Blake took a sniff and realized this woman was also a Vampire. In fact, the whole room smelled faintly of Vampires under the scents of disinfectant and other chemicals. _I'm in a medical ward. A_ Vampire _medical ward._ Had her mysterious savior brought her to her coven's lair? No. That was ridiculous. Wasn't it?

 _"_ _Ouch,"_ Blake whispered as "Violet" examined her injured side. She was annoyed at how lethargic her body felt.

"The damage is mostly healed," the undead medic announced.

"Then, why did she say 'ouch?'" the blond asked.

"I said 'mostly healed,'" Violet replied, continuing to perform diagnostic work on Blake. "She should stay here for a few more hours, but I expect she will be fully healed by nightfall. She might not even have a scar thanks to your . . . _contribution."_

Blake looked at the blond, who was beaming at that statement. What did the medic mean "contribution?" "Awesome," the blond declared. "Is it all right if we have a couple minutes alone?"

"I'm done with my examination," Violet said. "I'll send Saffron to get her some soup. I don't think she'll need much, given the 'meal' she just had, but I think it would be . . . good to get some food in her." So saying, the Vampiress packed up her equipment and left. Blake had the feeling

The remaining bloodsucker settled herself in her seat beside Blake. The infected Faunus eyed her cautiously. The blond smiled back, swinging her legs slightly. "So," she said. When Blake didn't respond, she continued. "I'm Yang, by the way. Yang Xiao Long. I don't think we got to introduce ourselves last night."

 _Last night_? Then, it was morning? How long had she been out? "My name is Blake Belladonna."

"'Blake Belladonna,' that's a pretty name," the blond—Yang—mused. "So, what's a pretty girl like you doing in a place like this?"

"You took me here," Blake replied, eyeing the . . . _friendly_ Vampire carefully.

"Well, yeah. I did," Yang said. "I mean, why were you being chased by those White Fang guys? Especially when you used to work for them?"

Blake's eyebrows shot up. Her body tensed, despite the protest from her injury. "How—?" she asked.

"My . . . Master told me." Yang's lips seemed to recoil around the title. "She said that was how the White Fang punished traitors: the silver-bullet-to-the-gut thing. Pretty nasty, if you ask me."

" . . . Humans have often compared Faunus to animals," Blake explained. "The leaders of the White Fang thought it was appropriate to kill betrayers like animals." At Yang's look of confusion, she elaborated. "Hunters, not Huntsmen or Huntresses mind you, sport hunters, often shoot their prey in the torso or neck to avoid damaging the head, the trophy. It also insures that we don't die quickly."

"Nastier than I thought," Yang muttered. "So, what you'd do? With a punishment like that, I kind of hope it was worth it."

". . . I tried to leave."

"That's it? You just wanted out?"

"The White Fang views abandonment far worse than it views actual crimes against Faunus," Blake explained. "And, I'm sure you know how the Fang (officially) views crimes against Faunus."

"Yeah," Yang nodded. "So, why did you want out, then? If you don't mind me asking."

"It's a long story," Blake said. Yang nodded again and let the matter drop. She was familiar with evasions. "What about you?" the Werebeast asked.

"Eh, not much to tell," Yang said. "I used to be a Huntress. Well, I was training to be one. Then, I got sick, _un-_ deathly sick, if you know what I mean." The fallen Huntress winked. Blake suppressed a groan. "Next thing you know, I've moved from Beacon to Vampire Boot Camp. I aced it, by the way." Yang ended her tale with a grin and a thumb pointed at her chest.

"I see," Blake said. Which was to say, she understood there was more to the story than that, but since Yang was letting her keep her secrets, she figured she owed the former Huntress the same courtesy. What she had been told though, was impressive. It certainly explained the blonde's prowess in battle. True, Blake had killed more enemies, but Yang's had been far stronger and tougher. The former White Fang member had been more than a little awed by her new ally. Speaking of which . . .

"What will happen to me now?" Blake asked.

"Oh, ah, that," Yang suddenly didn't look so confident anymore. She began playing with her fingers. "Well, you see, ah. You're kind of—ah—my slave?" She made it sound like a question.

"What?" Blake asked, her eyes narrowed.

Yang squirmed. "It wasn't my idea! You were injured, and I brought you here, 'cause you told me not to take you to the hospital, on account of the Were-thing and all. And, we got the bullet out, and I gave you my blood to heal you, and then Weiss—she's Master of this half of Vale, you know—came in and said you were my slave. She's been bugging me to get one for a while now, and I guess she decided you were it."

"I'm flattered," Blake said, sitting up. "But, I'll have to decline. If my presence here is a problem, I'll just leave."

"Wait, no you can't!" Yang said. "You haven't finished healing!"

"I've been much worse," Blake said, rising. She tried not to cringe at the pain in her side. "Now, if you don't mind—"

 _"_ _No,"_ Yang insisted.

Blake sat back down immediately, like a well-trained dog. The image was not lost on her. "What was that?" she asked—no, politely demanded.

Yang panicked again. "Oh, no. It's true. Oh, my gosh, I am so, so sorry."

"What did you do?" Blake growled. Literally, a growl edged into her voice. It was the first time since Yang had seen her smoking wound that the blond saw evidence that the woman before her was also a victim of the same virus as she was.

"I told you I had to give you some of my blood to heal you, right? Well, apparently, Vampire blood can create a temporary bond if you give someone enough of it. I guess what we did qualified." Yang offered a weak smile. It didn't help.

"How long?" Blake asked.

"A few months, maybe. Violet's not quite sure; she's never seen it done on a Werebeast, so she's only guessing based on how much I gave you." Yang shook her head. "Believe me, there's nothing I want more than to get you out of here, but it's more complicated than that."

"Give me one good reason it's 'more complicated than that,'" Blake demanded.

Yang sighed. "Well, I'd have to tell you sooner or later. You know how said Weiss has been pestering me for a while to get a slave? Well, the reason I can't just blow her off, the reason she cares so much, is because we're gonna become Bondmates pretty soon. It's kind of like Vampire marriage."

"Congratulations," Blake said, acidly.

"Hey, I don't like it, either. I wish I could just tell the Ice Queen to go meet the sun and ditch this dump forever!" Yang said, her eyes flashing red.

Blake actually backed up a little at the intensity of those eyes. "Why don't you?" she asked. "Does the Queen of Vale's Northern Night take betrayal the same way the White Fang do?"

"No," Yang said. Her eyes shifted back and her shoulders slumped. The image she presented was akin to a half-deflated balloon. "The thing is, Weiss has her own slave, Ruby Rose."

Blake caught on. "You care for her?"

"She's my baby sister" Yang said, her voice catching. "I got to keep her safe. So, if that means being the Ice Queen's bitch for all eternity, then I'll say 'I do.' And, if that means making you my slave . . . Well, I'm sorry, Blake, but you're not my sister."

* * *

 **Lexicon: Silver**

Silver is an elemental metal, rare and considered valuable by all four Kingdoms and most sub-cultures. Hunters in particular consider it one of the most useful metals as most Metabeings have an acute allergy to it. Due to their modified genetics, a Metabeing's cells will start to break down if they come into contact with silver resulting in decay or even combustion. This reaction happens so quickly and is so virulent that a Vyrkolakas' enhanced Aura is unable to heal it in time to save the infected cells. Hunters often laminate their weapons with silver to increase their effectiveness in combat. The toxic properties of silver against Metabeings are also thought by some anthropologists to be part of why it came to be considered so valuable and perhaps why it was used so extensively in jewelry; ancient cultures, they insist that silver was used by the rich to decorate themselves either to show their wealth (wasting a potential monster-slaying weapon on ornamentation) or as a form of personal protection. Whatever the reason, modern Remnant seems to view silver jewelry as nothing more than attractive accessories.

 **Vampire Blood**

A Vampire's Blood is the means by which these Metabeings infect others with HFMVV Strain I. To convert another, the Vampire sire must feed a substantial amount of his or her blood to the would-be fledgling. In this manner, Vampires are less "accidentally reproductive" compared to other Metabeings. By contrast, another, pre-existing Vrykolakas fed Vampiric blood will experience a massive increase in healing abilities. The precise reason for this is unknown, but theories include the transformative properties of the MFHVV stimulating a burst of rapid cellular activity (although Werebeasts, who share the same Strain of the Virus are not known to have similar properties) or the infusion of the feeder's Aura into the drinker. A common side-effect in both cases is that the Vampire and the drinker develop a temporary empathic bond with one another. This is what leads to the common misconception that a Vampire is bound to do his or her sire's bidding; in fact, this is often the result of the fledgling imprinting on his/her sire and the sire instilling discipline in the fledgling. This bond is the foundation of the Vampire "marriage" ritual, the Bond of Hunting and Survival.

* * *

 **Author's Notes: I don't really know for sure about the trophy-hunting thing (I could probably ask, since I'm related to a dozen-or-so-sport-hunters), but it makes since to me. I stole the idea from an episode of Blood Ties, a 2007 Canadian supernatural/Mystery drama based on the "Blood Books" by author Tanya Huff. The episode was titled "Wild Blood," where, yes, a hunter killed a shapeshifter in a similar fashion to ensure his "trophy" was undamaged. That might have been one of the darkest moments in the series because of the kind of psychopathy that had to be fueling the all-too-human killer, unlike the ghosts, demons, and whatnot who were just kind of what J.K. Rowling might call "usual evil."**

 **Similarly, I stole the phrase "Bond of Hunting and Survival" (sort of) from Mick Farren's "Renquist Quartet." I've never actually read the books, but the previews I read on Amazon mention the bond now and again and the wording always tickled my imagination. I'll explain how the Bond in this world works in depth when it becomes more relevant.**

 **And yes, I stole the phrase "meet the sun" from Trueblood. I just really liked it.**

 **Finally, that line "accidentally reproductive" is going to become important later on for one or more characters. I told you, you'll want to read the Lexicon. Although, if you aren't, I seriously doubt you're reading the footnotes. Anyhow, next Chapter, we take a break from Yang and her blood-sucking brethren and see some of her former friends, the students of Beacon Academy. (Yay! Aliterations! Heehee!)**


	4. Act 1: Chapter 4

**Author's Note: Hey all! New Chapter! I'd like to take the moment to thank and introduce my new beta: Mr. Stark357! Now that the Beta position is filled, is anyone intersted in perhaps submitting a cover illustration for this piece? (cough!-blatant begging-cough!)**

 **Anyway, in case any of you missed last chapter's Author's Notes . . . well, you probably aren't reading these, but in case you did but forgot, this chapter's going to leave our heroines for a bit to focus on good ole Jaune! Let's see what Beacon's like when half his friends are missing.**

 **Also, before I forget, I'd like to thank RedMage101 for writing "RWBY: Carmilla," a re-telling of the webseries _Carmilla_ with the Ruby characters, because that's how I found _Carmilla,_ and it is freakning AWESOME _(I like to describe it as, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the funny version)._**

 **Also giving a shout-out to Raziel12, author of "Love Waits," an excellent one-chapter Vamprie RWBY story. It was kind of what got me to actually inspired me to really start thinking about this.**

* * *

 **Questions in Reviews:**

 **1\. Will I ever reveal how Weiss and Ruby met: Yes, I'm probably going to answer that. Eventually. It hasn't come up yet, and I'm honestly still figuring it out. But, all our heroines will be getting a backstory explaining how they got where they are today! And, SPOILERS! Weiss' is going to be pretty important going forward.**

 **2\. Will Ruby become a Vampire: For a while I honestly didn't know the answer to this one. I knew Weiss and Yang both thought it would be a horrible life for her, but I really didn't want Ruby to die of old age and leave Weiss alone. I finally figured out a solution to this issue. No, I will not reveal it here, that will be dealt with in the not-so-near future. There's a lot of stuff to deal with first.**

 **Like say, Adam . . .**

* * *

 **Act 1: Shadows within Shadows**

 **Chapter 4: The Burden of the Badge**

"Yawwwwwwnnnnnnn!"

"Rough night, Jaune?"

"I've had better," Jaune Arc replied to his partner, Pyrrha Nikos. The blond-haired boy and his team, Team JNPR, were Second-year students at Beacon. This meant that, in addition to the standard sparring matches and chaperoned missions, he and his team now had to undergo "survival training" exercises. This largely consisted of being made to camp out in the woods or the hills or made to navigate an area of wilderness. Always in places known to have a decent-sized population of Grimm.

Team JNPR had just completed one such training session. They'd spent the night in the Emerald Forest, just outside of Beacon's protective walls. The four had spent literally, _the entire night_ fending off wave after wave of Beowolves. When Professor Port had finally come to collect them, the team had reveled in his praise. Granted, this praise was filled with self-aggrandizing comparisons to the aged Huntsman's own achievements, but it was fulfilling none the less.

Jaune had felt particularly proud about the number of monsters he'd slain. True, it was fewer than any of his comrades, but the boy he'd been a year ago never could have accomplished what he had last night. He'd grown, and he knew it. His teammates knew it too. Pyrrha, his personal trainer and perhaps his saving grace—the one who'd made the self-conscious faker who'd cheated his way into Beacon with fake transcripts into an actual warrior—had heartily congratulated him on his improvement. He'd blushed under her praise. Nora, in true Nora fashion, was _still_ jumping up and down proclaiming the whole team's "Awesome-tude!" in between telling increasingly inaccurate stories about their adventure. Even Jaune's brother-in-arms, Ren, had commented that he was, "impressed" by Jaune's performance the night before. Coming from someone who was as silent, as Nora was vocal and was already twice the Huntsman Jaune was, that was high praise indeed.

Currently, Ren was asleep. The mostly-dark haired boy suffered from low stamina and had collapsed against Nora the instant the team had been dismissed by Port. Despite being next to Nora's mouth for the entire trip back to their dorm, and in spite of Nora sitting next to him as he lay in bed, kicking her feet out and bouncing up and down despite Jaune and Pyrrha's requests that she stop, Ren was still fast asleep. His blood-sugar must have been worse than anyone thought.

That was all right, though. The one good thing about survival training was that, if the day after wasn't a weekend day, the team got it off to recover and write their official reports: what they'd experienced, how they'd dealt with it, what could have been done differently, etc. Since, unlike training missions, survival nights were assigned at random, often with little warning beforehand, teams got more days off than not. That was, in Jaune's opinion, the only good thing about them.

Right now, the Arc scion wanted nothing more than to climb into his own bed and join Ren in the land of sawing logs and counting sheep. Unfortunately, he was the team leader, and that came with its own set of lessons. Lessons which, his scroll reminded him, he was not exempt from unless he was either in the Infirmary or on a mission.

"You know you're learning useful things," Pyrrha said, diplomatically. "Honestly, Jaune, I envy you."

"Yeah, well, I'm sorry, Pyrrha; I'd trade places with you if I could, but . . ." Jaune trailed off. He realized, he sounded like an ass. In all honesty, he was impressed by his partner's enthusiasm and energy. In spite of all they'd gone through the night before, she was still eager to learn more; in spite of all her accomplishments, she still wanted to improve. Also, he realized that she was right, as always. "Listen, Pyrrah. I promise, I'll tell you everything they teach us as soon as I get back, OK?"

This was Jaune's standard promise to his red-headed partner every time he went to lessons without his teammates, but Pyrrha always responded the same way. She smiled broadly. "Thank you, Jaune. I'm very grateful."

Jaune mumbled a response, before dragging his feet to his Captains' Lesson. He'd managed to change out of the previous night's shirt and jeans, but his Scroll had informed him that he'd need his weapons and combat gear, chest and shoulder armor he'd worn yesterday. He tried his best to ignore the smell.

"Wow, what happened to you, Jauney-boy?" an obnoxious voice asked.

 _"Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"_ Jaune couldn't stop the groan from escaping. The person who had spoken was Cardin Winchester: captain of Team CRDL, and Jaune's personal tormentor. If Pyrrha (and to a lesser extend the rest of his team) was what made Beacon tolerable, what made it enjoyable and made him believe that he could actually live up to his family's legacy, Cardin (and to a lesser extent the rest of his team) were what made Beacon horrible, what made it a virtual prison-sentence and made Jaune question not only whether he could live up to his family's legacy but if it was even worth trying to.

"Aw, did someone have a late night?" Cardin asked, speaking in the rhetorical voice that let Jaune know Cardin already knew the answer and was only asking to mess with him. "Too bad for you, Jauney-boy, because I hear we've got a _special_ lesson lined-up for today."

 _How to take a punch?_ Jaune wondered. _Taking turns on each other?_ He continued to do his best to ignore the other Captain. After Jaune had stood up to him—and saved his life from an Ursa Major after the rest of Team CRDL had abandoned their leader—last year, Cardin had down-graded from, "personal persecutor" to, "thorn-in-the-side." For whatever twisted sense of honor or respect the other boy had, Cardin had scaled back on his torments and stopped trying to blackmail Jaune into doing his bidding.

Aside from Pyrrha, Cardin was the only one who knew Jaune had tricked his way into the academy. He'd stopped threatening to reveal that knowledge, though Jaune had no clue why. It was patently obvious Cardin didn't treat the whole, "saving-his-life-thing" as any big deal. Still, he'd stopped with the blackmail, and that was good enough for Jaune. His mother had taught him to be grateful for whatever small blessings he could get.

The two joined the other captains from their year. There were roughly a hundred students in each year, divided into four-person teams. This meant Jaune and Cardin were in the company of twenty-three other men and women in the assembly hall. Tall and short, male and female, Human and Faunus, they all stood in silence, waiting for the teacher to arrive.

Ozpin arrived late, as usual.

"Hello, Captains," Ozpin said. Immediately, everyone's attention sharpened. Ozpin always referred to them as "students." Also unusual, Ozpin wasn't alone. Professor Goodwitch was with him, not unheard of, but so were Port and Oobleck. Didn't they have classes of their own to prepare for? The three teachers stood at silent attention as the Headmaster went on. "Today is one of the most important lessons you will ever learn and one of the most dangerous. I'm going to ask you now, are you ready?"

The assembled Captains all murmured variations on, "Yes, Professor."

Ozpin frowned. "Perhaps I wasn't clear. The lesson you're going to learn today is both highly important and more dangerous than anything you've encountered so far. So, I'm going to ask again: are you ready?"

"Yes, Sir!" the students announced. Jaune was afraid his voice cracked while he said it, but hoped that if he ignored it, everyone else would too. Goodness knew they had plenty of reason to: this wasn't the normal Ozpin, this was the man whose, "greeting" on the first day had left them all feeling both weak and ashamed. This wasn't the Headmaster; this was a Master Huntsman taking stock of the new blood and not particularly caring for what he saw.

Said Master Huntsman nodded. Apparently they weren't hopeless after all. "Follow me."

Ozpin walked over to the base of the stage and laid his hand on the raised surface. Instantly, a section of the stage flew back like reverse-trapdoor whilst another section on the floor did likewise, revealing a dimly-lit set of stairs. The headmaster descended those steps, neither slowly nor quickly, but steadily.

"One at a time, please," Goodwitch instructed. This served as a kind of verbal prod to get the assembled Captains moving. "Watch your step."

Jaune fell in behind his silent companions. Even Cardin had quieted. Everyone knew how serious this was. Especially, when Jaune heard a _tap, tap, tap,_ behind him. He turned around—he was near the end of the line—and saw Professor Goodwitch at the end of the line. Ozpin in front, Goodwitch in back, Port and Oobleck apparently left behind, (as guards?): Not good.

 _I wonder what Yang and Ruby would think of all this?_ the blond-haired Captain thought. Yang had also been a blond-haired Captain, although that was the only thing the two had in common. Ruby had been Yang's little sister, who was still a couple of years away from her first year at Beacon, but was already a legend at Signal. Yang had been out-going and confident, always ready to give a smile or a slap on the back. Ruby had been innocent and awkward but wise beyond her years. Much like Pyrrha, Jaune didn't know why Yang had befriended him, much less introduced him to her precious baby sister, but she had. The two had been a good friends to have, too: funny, supportive, and smarter than most people realized. It had been Ruby's advice that had inspired Jaune to stand up to Cardin when the other Captain had tried to hurt Pyrrha for some kind of macho-honor/vengeance thing. Everyone was expecting nothing but the best from the blond brawler and the red-headed prodigy.

They'd both died a little over a year ago. Ruby was gone before the first semester was over. Yang had disappeared shortly afterwards, hardly a month into the second semester of the first year.

Ruby had vanished without a trace, though Yang claimed it was Vampires. The blond became irritable and withdrawn, pushing her friends away while her mood swung from despair to fury at the drop of a pin. She'd spent every spare minute she could trying to find the ones responsible for Ruby's disappearance, often going into Vale alone after dark to search for clues. Jaune hadn't known what to do. Pyrrha and Ren had counselled patience. She'd be all right once she calmed down. Jaune hoped Yang was all right, because she was about as calm as calm got now.

No one was sure what happened. One day, his scroll was ringing, and when he opened it, it was a message from the staff informing the student body that Yang had disappeared the night before and all that had been found was the bloody remains of her jacket.

Some people suspected Vampires, or possibly White Fang Therianthropes, if such things actually existed. Ren thought she'd just been killed by some street gang, probably for her beloved motorbike, Bumblebee; it wasn't like secretive Creatures of the Night had much use for it.

It didn't matter; two of Jaune's best friends were dead, and was a good reminder that life on Remnant was dangerous and uncertain, even in the most well-guarded cities. That's why there were Huntsmen and Huntresses. To stop events like this from happening.

At the bottom of the stairs, Jaune saw Ozpin standing before the assembled Captains, who formed a line in front of him. Behind the Headmaster was a door.

"This is your last chance," Ozpin announced. "What lies beyond this door is not to be taken lightly. Your teachers and I have taken every precaution for your safety, but . . ." He looked them all in the eye. "That is only a probability. If you take part in this exercise, you may die."

"So, do any of you want to leave?"

Jaune looked around. Was Ozpin serious? They could _die?_ What was he thinking? Still, no one said anything. It couldn't be so bad, could it? They'd always done dangerous things as part of the curriculum. That was how things worked. It had never been an issue before. Jaune felt something clench inside him as he thought about Ruby and Yang again. They were in more danger in the real world than in Beacon.

Ozpin nodded. "Very well. Let us begin." He turned around and placed his hand against a pad on the wall. A scanner read his palm and a set of doors opened.

Behind them was a barred gate, guarding a wide room. In the middle of the room was a man. He was dark-skinned and apparently hairless, though as he was as wearing a shirt and pants, that was hard to confirm. He was sitting in a bizarre chair with wires sticking out of it. Jaune's eyes adjusted to the light, and he saw the man wasn't sitting in the chair; he was strapped to it, and the "wires" were actually hooked into the man's neck.

Jaune managed to swallow his questions (who was this guy? Why was he here? Why were they here? Where was here?). But, he managed to hold it in. He'd been given an order, and he'd obey it. The Headmaster expected nothing less.

"I'm sure you're all wondering who this man is and why we're here," Ozpin said. "This is Beacon Academy's darkest secret. A Vampire. We call it the Eldest, and it is perhaps the oldest Vampire still alive today."

"Flattering as ever, Headmaster," the Vampire spoke. Its voice was deep and even . . . sophisticated?

"Why is that thing still alive?" Cardin yelled beside Jaune. "I thought Huntsmen killed Vampires on sight!"

Ozpin nodded. "That is our usual rules. When a Huntsmen _or a Huntress_ encounters a Vampire, we are expected to kill it, unless the risk seems too great or we have the chance to gather more information by letting the Metabeing live. That is the case here; the Eldest presents a unique opportunity for learning. As Hunters, you will face many dangers. You have already faced Creatures of Grimm. They are deadly and dangerous, but soulless. They lack Auras and Semblances, and most are not very intelligent. A Vampire—or a Werebeast if it has control of itself—is as intelligent as a Mortal; they have Auras and many are also trained in the use of Semblances. But that is not the most terrible thing about them. There are two other ways in which Vampires and Werebeasts are different from Grimm, and these differences make them much more dangerous. Can anyone tell me what they are?"

The students shuffled a little, mumbling to themselves. One young lady spoke up. "They can spread their infection to others."

Ozpin nodded. "Indeed. No one can say for certain how Grimm reproduce, but once a nest of them has been cleared out, they tend to stay away for a while. A Metabeing, however, can reproduce whenever it wants to and they can choose who they want to, so most of them are in their prime when they become monstrous. Now, what else is there?"

"They can merge with fog?" Cardin offered.

"That's a power only available to Vampires," Ozpin said. "I'm looking for something both Vampires and Werebeasts can do. Something that should frighten you far more than such a limited ability."

"It can't be so special if animals can do it," Cardin muttered. Jaune frowned but said nothing, thinking. Everyone went back to mumbling. Jaune scratched his head. What else was there? What else? He tried examining the Eldest for answers. What made him so special? As far as Jaune could tell: nothing. The ancient monster looked like an average guy. _Wait . . ._

"They look like people," he said. All eyes, Cardin's, the other Captains', Goodwitch and Ozpin's, even the Eldest's. The blond swallowed. "They look just like us," he repeated.

"Exactly," the Headmaster replied. "A Creature of Grimm, even an example of a newly discovered species, is easily recognizable for what it is. Their black coloration, bone armor, and red eyes ensure that they can never be confused with anything else. Those infected with Strain I of HFMVV, however, still look exactly like normal Humans or Faunus. Every night, countless people walk down the streets, not knowing how many of the people they see are as normal as they are. That is what makes these creatures so dangerous and so difficult to exterminate, because it's so difficult to tell them and us apart."

Ozpin looked Goodwitch in the eye. The blond teacher nodded and spoke. "As Huntsmen and Huntresses, you will have to do battle with these creatures on occasion. Tonight's exercise is meant to prepare you for this eventuality by pitting you against the Eldest in combat. Each of you will battle him one-on-one in his cell." After speaking, the air was filled with the babbling of protests and questions of the various Captains. Raising her voice, she continued "We've weakened the Eldest by infecting the blood we give it, but its combat prowess remains formidable." Her eyes, amazingly, became even harder. "There is a reason this creature became as old as it is."

 _"Pfft!_ How tough could it be if they've been keeping it here for ages?" Cardin asked.

"Thank you, Captain Winchester," Goodwitch said. "You may go first." Clicking a key on her scroll, Good witch stepped back as the doors rolled open.

Cardin looked around, clearly not believing what had just happened. Then, he adopted his usual smirk and, shouldering his mace, the red-headed Captain strutted into the cell.

 _Pop! Snap!_ Goodwitch hit a few more keys and her scroll and the tubes disconnected from the Eldest and the straps binding the ancient creature to the chair opened.

It stood. It smiled.

 _"Yaaaaaaaahhh!"_ Cardin screamed as he charged, mace raised for a diagonal stroke. Jaune had fallen for this strategy many time in the past. It was a blatant intimidation move. Additionally, it had fooled many opponents into thinking Cardin was less skilled that he actually was. Cardin might be a bully, but he was no thug. The red-headed Captain was one of the best fighters of their year.

Which made it more than a little surprising when the Eldest floored him in no time flat.

"Amusing," the Eldest remarked, in that surprisingly cultured voice of it had. "Would you like to surrender, child?"

 _"Arrrg! Yarrrggg!"_ Cardin's screams were more realistic now. He attacked in earnest, swinging his mace in a series of devastating blows, but not one managed to hit. The Eldest always backed away before the weapon could touch him. It was all a game to the monster, a farce. Until, its back was against the bars of the cell.

Cardin, panting now from the frustration and energy of his attacks, rallied his strength for one last charge. _"Heeeee-aaaaaiiiiiiii—"_

 _WHAM!_

The Eldest had redirected Cardin's attack, slamming him face first into the bars of the cage. Cardin whimpered, and the Eldest smiled. "If I were permitted to by my jailors, I would kill you now, boy. You're not even worth infecting."

The Eldest backed away, letting Cardin fall to the floor. Jaune could see that the other Captain's face was bruised. There were also dark marks on the back of his head. Looking up, he saw that the Eldest was licking Cardin's blood from its fingers.

"Would the next volunteer please step forward?" Goodwitch asked, as she and Ozpin both approached the cell. One of the female Captains, Argent of Team ALOY, joined them. Goodwitch checked Cardin's injuries, before telekinetically lifting him up and taking him with her as she left the cell. Ozpin left with Goodwitch and Cardin, using his own Scroll to close the cell. Jaune saw Goodwitch push a button on the wall, and a panel slid out which she lay the fallen Cardin down on like an impromptu stretcher. "Begin," she said.

Argent lasted longer than Cardin, having seen the other Captain fight, she took on a more cautious approach, trying to keep the Vampire at a distance and take it down with her ranged weapon, a bladed boomerang. The Eldest was clever, however, and took advantage of her strategy. The pair danced around the room until Argent forgot where she was going and backed up into the Eldest's chair.

 _"No-ooooo!"_ Argent cried as she fell backwards. The Huntress threw her boomerang wildly, but the Vampire caught it in its hand. It leapt at her like a pouncing cat. The Captain barely managed to escape, rolling to the floor. Getting up, she swung wildly with her second weapon, a hatchet, but the Eldest parried the blow with the Huntress's own boomerang, twisting it out of her hands and leaving her defenseless.

"I'd say I've won, wouldn't you?" it asked.

Argent glared, clutching her wrist. Then, she sighed and bowed her head.

"Don't be so disappointed," the Eldest called out as she exited, to be replaced by another lamb to be slaughtered. "Unlike the last one, you're actually worth turning."

And so it went. One-by-one the Captains engaged the ancient Vampire, and one-by-one they were defeated.

"I thought he was supposed to be weakened," Jaune said, as Goodwitch called for the next bout to begin.

"Oh, it is," Ozpin said, materializing beside him, making Jaune jump a little. "We've tainted to the blood we feed it, so most of its rather impressive Aura is focused on recovery, and its Semblance is unusable. Although, that's more for the school's benefit than yours."

Jaune looked at the Headmaster. "What was his Semblance?"

 _"Its_ Semblance is Telepathy," Ozpin explained. "The Eldest could speak mind to mind with others of its kind. This gave its nest unparalleled coordination in both attacks and in defense. It also made containing the creature difficult. Our predecessors originally thought that wiping out the nest would be enough, but Eldest proved quite adept at recruiting others to its cause, and its position as our captive gave its new allies a dangerous level of insight into our defenses. In fact, the reason this place exists, hidden from the rest of the school isn't to keep the Eldest from escaping; it's to keep it from learning anything of value."

WHAM! _Bang-ng-ng-ng._

Jaune looked up to see the cell bars rattling as the last Captain lay in a moaning heap before them. It was easy to figure out what had happened: the Eldest had thrown the poor sucker at them. Now, it was reclining in its chair, amused expression on its face waiting for its last victim.

"Your turn, Captain Arc," Goodwitch remarked.

Jaune gulped and drew his word. Flicking a switch, his scabbard expanded into a shield. _Here I go._ Walking in, Jaune was immediately aware of the disadvantage he was at compared to his fellow Captains: his antiquated weaponry had no long-range capabilities. He would have to take on the monster directly. _Here goes nothing._ He charged, leading with his shield. Eldest waited until the last second to leap away, causing Jaune plow into the reinforced metal furniture.

Eldest came down feet-first onto Jaune's back, causing the Captain to cry out in pain. Jaune kept his head, though, and pushed back as fast as he could, knocking the Vampire off. The Eldest rolled forward, standing up three feet away from Jaune, still smiling. Jaune charged again, sword-first this time. Eldest, now lacking a launch-pad, responded as he did with Cardin, dancing away from Jaune's blows, leading Jaune back towards the cell bars.

The Eldest's back touched the bars.

 _Just like Cardin,_ Jaune thought. The Eldest had beaten his rival by redirecting his heavy attacks. _So, what if I . . ._ As fast as he could, Jaune hit the release boon on his Shield, letting it fall to the floor. Gripping the sword in both hands, Jaune let loose a flurry of attacks. They weren't well-aimed (Jaune having not been trained in the art of two-handed swordsmanship), but they were _fast._ Faster than Cardin's heavy mace had been. The Eldest avoided or parried them, but it couldn't redirect them as it had Cardin. Then . . .

 _"Ah!"_ The Vampire grunted as it dove to the side. Standing up, Eldest examined its bicep, where a cut on its sleeve was rapidly darkening with blood. For a couple of moments, no one said anything or twitched a muscle. Then, Eldest smiled again. "Well done." It opened its mouth to reveal a pair of elongated upper canines, while raising its open hands to show off claws so long they had to be called talons. _"Well done."_

 _Eep!_ Jaune thought, as the Vampire leapt at him. Another problem with Jaune's swordsmanship was that it was designed to be used with a Shield, so his defense was at best, "wanting." Still, he managed to hold off the Metabeing's swipes. Too bad it wasn't able to protect him from his own shield.

 _"AAAAHHH!"_ Jaune went down on one knee. Now, he was the bleeding one, a wound inflicted when the Vampire had kicked his own shield into his shin. At least the Eldest sounded like it was panting now. _Wait . . ._ Jaune looked up and saw Eldest no longer looking amused. Now, it looked _hungry._

 _Oum protect me!_ Jaune thought/prayed as the Vampire leapt at him again, this time, with intentions to kill. There was no way he could stop or avoid this. _At least, I'll see Yang and Ruby again_ . . .

 _CRASH!_

The Eldest was lifted up and slammed into the far wall, while a dozen or so wooden arrows fluttered around the Monster. One in particular hovering right in front of its heart.

"That's enough," Ozpin said, walking into the cell alongside Goodwitch, who was pointing the riding crop she used as a wand at the Metabeing.

"Well, perhaps if I was better fed, I would be able to avoid temptation better," the Eldest remarked.

"You have better control," the Headmaster said, turning his back on the creature to examine Jaune.

"Not when I exert myself so," the monster replied.

"Can you heal that?" Ozpin asked, turning his attention to Jaune.

"I think I can," Jaune said, focusing all his Aura on the wound. The bleeding stopped and the pain subsided, slightly, but when Jaune tried to stand, he almost fell over again.

Ozpin caught him. "We'll take you to the Infirmary along with the others. Lock it up," he ordered Goodwitch, as he helped Jaune limp out.

The blond nodded and levitated the Eldest back to its chair. Taking out her Scroll in her free hand, she locked it up again. Then, she followed Ozpin and Jaune out before closing the doors again.

"Huntsmen of this modern era are so disappointing compared to the days before the Kingdoms," the Eldest called as Ozpin led the group out. "They used to be so much more . . . _fun."_

Jaune looked back at the Metabeing as the doors closed on its smiling face. He, _it,_ was smiling. It really saw all of this as nothing more than a source of amusement. It was a monster, Jaune realized. The same kind of monster that had killed Ruby, Yang, and so many others. _I'll kill them all,_ Jaune thought. _Ruby, Yang, I promise I'll kill them all for the both of you._

* * *

 **Lexicon: The Pre-Kingdom Era**

Prior to the founding of the Four Kingdoms, Humans and Faunus lived in small villages and towns, sometimes interracial but often not, that had to routinely fight off waves of Grimm as societies outside the Kingdoms do today. While the presence of Grimm kept the numbers of Mortals small, it had the same effect on the Metabeing populous. Vampires and Werebeasts lived in nomadic nests and packs containing no more than 8-10 members on average. This was because these creatures needed to remain mobile and in small numbers to acquire food and avoid confrontations with Mortals, but also to protect them from the same waves of Grimm which attacked the uninfected. After the Kingdoms were founded, Mortals flocked to them for safety, but so did Vampires. Now, Vampire Covens can be a hundred strong and able to remain undetected within the walls of the Kingdoms except for occasional evidence of kills or abductions.

 **Vampires' Circulatory Systems**

Interestingly, although blood flows throughout Vampires' bodies as in Humans, a Vampire's heart does not beat; it is speculated that blood flows due to the contraction of bodily muscles or some unknown quality of the Vampire's modified blood. Yet, the heart remains a deadly vulnerability to Vampires, because blood continues to flow into it. If the heart is punctured by wood or silver, blood will continue to flow into the pierced organ, becoming infected with the toxic substance and then flow out into the other organs, contaminating them in turn. Ultimately, the poisoned brain shuts down and the creature either dies or is weakened enough for its head to be removed. By contrast, lead bullets or steel blades to the heart are considered little more than flesh wounds.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Yes, Argent is more or less named after the family of Werewolf hunters in _Teen Wolf._ I kind of only intended to make her up for a bit of filler so Jaune could watch other people's fights, but now I like this character, and I'm already thinking of things to do with her. Well, one thing at least, and it'll be _fun (Heeheehee . . . )._ Also, in case anyone guessed, her weapons are basically the same utilized by Kamen Rider Den-O in Wing Form. By the way, Team ALOY's name is pronounced "Alloy" (like metals).**

 **And, yes, the Eldest is inspired by the Alpha Vampire in Supernatural, although the inspiration for this whole chapter came from the BtVS anthology comic, _Tales of the Vampire,_ specifically "Tales of the Vampire, Part I" (yeah, they named the whole series after a series of stories in it, kind of confusing in my opinion, but what do I know?). Apparently, it used to be part of Watcher-training to have groups of young Watchers-to-be conduct interviews with a captive vampire (yeah, I made that pun). I liked the idea, but couldn't come up with anything worth talking about, so I opted for the training fights instead. I'd like to think it worked out pretty well, since it gave me new characters and new ideas for characters (ex: Jaune's vow at the end was something I made up as I was writing this chapter, not something I had planned from the get-go). **

**Next Chapter! Back to our heroes. Maybe. Mostly. And, my first Omake!**


	5. Act 1: Chapter 5

**Author's Note: Hey, all. Jsut finsihed this with the help of my Beta, Mr. Stark357. Enjoy. WARNING: There is a bit of Lime in this chapter. Nothing too explicit for an M-Rating, I hope, but be warned, skip to the next scene if it offends you.**

 **P.S.**

 **I'd also like to give a shout out to RejectedKnight23 for updating _Sunshine and Shadows II,_ part of my favorite RWBY fanfic series. Seriously, go check out _Sunshine and Shadows!_ The series is phenomenal. Start with Part I and read _In the Meantime_ if you want (I've never read Team BLACK, so I can't honestly say anything for or against it). Also, _Four Deadly Secrets_ by OneirosTheWriter has been updated and is also worth checking out. Now, if only Dinas Emrys would update _Premium Well,_ I'd be in RWBY Fanfic Heaven . . .**

* * *

 **Act 1: Shadows within Shadows**

 **Chapter 5: On the Subject of Slaves**

"Please, Mistress, have mercy," the Vampire whimpered. He was kneeling before Weiss in the middle of the Vampires' throne room, wearing torn clothes, his orange hair unkempt, bound with chains. The bands around his ankles, wrists, and neck were silver-plated; Blake guessed that even if he was strong enough to merge into the shadows or the stone floor, he would have been in too much pain do so. Additionally, the burning probably distracted him from using whatever Semblance he had (if he had one) and encouraged him to focus his Aura on healing. Blake had no reason to believe the Vampire wasn't guilty of whatever crimes he was accused of, but given her own recent experiences, she couldn't help but feel a little sympathy for him.

She and Yang stood in the corner, some distance from the Master and her bodyguards. In front of them, every Vampire and slave in the coven was assembled. There were too many people for Blake to differentiate individuals, but she guessed there was a roughly equal number of slaves as Vampires—and, any Faunus she saw was not a Vampire—in which case . . . Blake struggled to look disinterested, but it was difficult. There must have been two hundred people in front of her; she was one Werebeast in the presence of a hundred Vampires. This was a scene from her nightmares.

At least her new mistress and the psychic link they shared was helping, somewhat. Yang was scowling at the kneeling Vampire, and Blake felt the fear she should have felt in this situation being drowned in the blonde's fury, the absolute contempt Yang (and by extension, Blake now) felt for this bloodsucker. A small voice in her wondered if she would explode if it kept up. As it was, she was sorely tempted to attack the defenseless Vampire.

"Sorry," the blond whispered. Blake saw her wince as she tried to control her emotions. "But, I think we came at a bad time."

"It's always amusing to watch someone without mercy beg for it," the white-haired Vampiress said, eying her subject like a cockroach. She was seated on her throne with Ruby at her feet. On either side, Fox and Velvet stood guard while Coco and Yatsuhari flanked the prisoner. "Dearest Yang," the female Master asked, "what is the law regarding killing mortals?"

"Don't do it," Yang said. "Unless you have to," she added reluctantly.

Weiss nodded. "As it should be. Now, Ocher," she said, addressing the captive. "How many Humans and Faunus have you killed?"

"I can't remember, Mistress," the bound Vampire said.

"Coco?" the Master asked.

"Eleven for sure." The tote-carrier shrugged as she replied. "Plus who knows how many we don't."

"Eleven innocents . . ." the Vampire Queen hissed. "Do you have even the slightest idea of the trouble you've brought on us?"

"Mistress, I—"

"Silence!" Weiss cut him off. "That was a rhetorical question. I already know you don't. Otherwise you wouldn't have done it! Does anyone here know the most effective way to bring Hunters down on our kind?" She was addressing the entire assembly now. "They find dead bodies of our victims! Do you really think they care when we sneak into bedrooms and steal from sleepers? Or when we tap the veins of the homeless? Of course they do!" Weiss said, settling into a brooding, intimidating figure, like a viper trying to determine if a human was within striking distance. "They care, but they almost never _learn_ about these things. The mortals who bare our marks—if they can even find them—are almost always too frightened to admit to them. It's one way the stigma against our kind is beneficial to us," she said, scowling. This is why we are forbidden to kill, why we keep slaves who feed us with what they can spare. Dead bodies can't be ashamed of themselves. They cannot hide their wounds and the symptoms of their blood loss from others, and their families are often distraught enough to go to the authorities. And, if you confine all your killings to the same place, Hunters can find where we are!" Weiss took a breath to steady herself. Again she questioned Coco. "When was the first person, that we know about, killed?"

"Three or four months ago," Coco replied.

"Three or four months," Weiss hissed. "Eleven people were killed in three or four months! Congratulations, I'm quite certain there's a file in every Vale police department and in Beacon's archives marked 'Vampire Serial Killer!' If the Hunters haven't already dispatched their teams to investigate our territory, they must be insane!" Weiss glared at the bound Vampire, who whimpered some more from his submissive position.

"Please, Mistress," he begged. "I can't help myself, I—"

"That's what you said last time!" Weiss screamed. Jumping to her feet, the Vampiress abandoned all semblance of a royal queen. This, Blake realized was a Master Vampire, a creature of wrath and power. A lioness in human form.

"Two months ago, you stood before my court, spouting the same lines. How your sire never taught you control. How hard it was to change after you'd spent decades living like this. I took pity on you then. Allowed you a chance to redeem yourself, and did you take it? No!"

"But, Mistress," the Vampire spoke again, and Blake was suddenly aware of how oily it was. If Weiss was a lioness, this Vampire was a snake. "Be reasonable, how could anyone tame their base instincts in a mere two months?"

"You could have asked for help!" Weiss screamed, her fangs flashing. "I assigned you a team of partners to join you on your hunts. They should have educated you in how to control yourself. Instead, you ran from them to kill whenever you could. This wasn't about your instincts. This was about murder!"

"What of it!" Ocher screamed. It was apparent he'd lost whatever poise he had. "There are dozens of us! We could annihilate all the Huntsmen in Vale with no effort, why should we fear feeble mortals?"

"Fool! Mortals are not like us!" Weiss screamed. "They are not fractured or territorial. Haven't you paid attention to the world since the end of the War? Hunters from all over the world work together in battle. They cooperate with their nations' militaries and police forces. And they all share technology and hunting tactics. Do you have any conception of the force they could bring against us? Thank Oum your victims didn't include Hunters, or we'd already be facing them!"

"But, we aren't without resources, _Mistress,"_ Ocher replied, his voice so oily Blake thought it must be flammable. "Are you not the scion of—" Suddenly, the Vampire found his mouth filled with the Coven Master's blade. Blake gulped; she hadn't seen Weiss draw it.

"Mention my sire and me in two breaths, not one," Weiss ordered. Withdrawing her sword, she made a show of wiping the blade. "Ocher, you have done more than just disobey my laws; you have betrayed us all. And, betrayal," Weiss' eyes scanned the assembled crowd, "is not something to be taken lightly. It must be dealt with quickly, cleanly, and unambiguously."

Weiss raised the blade to Ocher's neck once more. Blake closed her eyes. In the dark, she heard a gasp.

"Then again," Weiss said, musing out loud. "I'm given to understand that three strikes are usually given before one is called out, correct?"

Ocher looked around, realizing Weiss was speaking to him. "Yes, Mistress. That is the usual rule."

"Then consider yourself down to your final chance," the Master said, sheathing her blade. "If you break my law again, you will die, and your head will be delivered to the Vale police to help them close the case on your mistakes."

"Thank you, Mistress!" Ocher's bravado had evaporated now that there was another chance to save his scrawny neck. "You're generosity is legendary!"

"Not quite," Weiss said. "You're still going to be punished. I must set an example after all. So, you're going to spend the next one hundred and twenty-one years in the _Carcere Aquae."_

"The Prison of Water," the convict repeated.

"Eleven years each of your eleven mistakes," Weiss said. "Pleasant dreams, Ocher. Anyone who wishes to may say their good byes on the way. Dismissed." With a flick of her hand, Weiss returned to her throne. As she sank into it, Ruby took one of the Master's hands in her's and started playing with it. The Vampires and slaves slowly filed out of the room, not uttering a word until they'd past the door. Even then, they spoke in hushed tones.

Coco and Yatsuhari pulled Ocher to his feet and began to drag him away. "Coco," Weiss called, halting them. "Stay. I would like your opinion on something. Velvet and Fox will aid Yatsuhari in escorting the prisoner."

Coco nodded and left the prisoner's side, sauntering over to the Master. Velvet and Coco did likewise. The Vampiress made sure to swat Fox on the butt as she passed him. Her mate rolled his eyes at her antics, taking Ocher under his arm and leading him away.

"What should we do with his slave, Mistress?" Coco asked.

"He's still in the Infirmary, isn't he?" Weiss asked, absently, seemingly more engrossed in Ruby's actions. "When he is well enough to leave, assign him to a new master or mistress. Use your own discretion; I don't care who gets him. If no one else turns up, let Violet keep him. I'm certain she could always use another set of hands."

Coco smirked. "What a kinky nurse we have."

The Queen of Vale's Northern Night pulled a face. "Just because we live underground is no reason for your mind to live in a gutter, Coco. Not everyone is as oversexed as you are."

"I'll bet Violet would be happier if she was," Coco said with a smirk. "What's the problem, Mistress?"

"No problem," Weiss replied. Withdrawing her hand from Ruby, she beckoned Yang and Blake over. "I just thought you would like to hear the tale our newest member has to tell."

Blake felt a wave of irritation pass through her, and she wasn't certain how much of it was her's and how much was Yang's. Still, the pair took a few steps forward. Coco took up position beside the throne.

"Why have the White Fang been transforming their recruits into Werebeasts?" Weiss asked.

Blake frowned at her. It wasn't enough to be called a glare, but it was obvious Blake held no respect for the Queen of Vale's Northern Night. Then, her limbs loosened and her brow relaxed against her will. Blake growled internally. This was Yang's doing; the blond brawler had adapted to their empathic link with remarkable speed. In other circumstances, the Werecat might have been impressed.

With a sigh, she replied, "I don't know. My mentor said it was necessary for us to become stronger. At first, I thought it was just becoming stronger warriors, but, as time went on, he and our leaders began saying stranger things, frightening things. They spoke about . . . 'evolving our race,' and 'becoming the masters rather than the slaves.' I still don't know what's going on, but . . ."

"But?" Weiss asked. Her voice was quiet now.

Blake took a deep breath. "When I was turned, most of the White Fang's operatives and supporters were still mortal. Now, almost none of them are. Almost every new recruit I've seen has been infected."

Yang drew in a tight breath. That sounded like a whole lot of Werebeasts.

Ruby, though, drew everyone's attention. "But, how are they keeping this a secret? There's a lot of White Fang, right? How is Vale not being overrun with Werebeasts every full moon?"

Blake looked at the slave girl for a moment. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Yang doing the same. It was . . . odd. Wasn't this girl a slave? The infected Cat Faunus saw Weiss make a gesture with her hand that presumably meant she was to answer the question. "I'm not sure. They lock the young ones up to keep them from going on a rampage, but I have no idea how the higher-ups do it themselves."

"There's not a lot you can do with an army of Werebeasts," Coco noted.

Weiss nodded. No, there isn't. We will have to discuss this further. In the meantime, Dearest Yang, why don't you introduce your new pet to her new home and teach her, her new duties."

"Yes, Mistress," Yang replied, sounding unhappy.

Blake herself was beyond unhappy; this . . . Vampire was talking about her like she was an animal! Just like the humans she'd protested against as a child. _It doesn't matter what I am, or where I am,_ she thought. _It's all the same._

A warm hand wrapped around hers.

Blake looked up and saw Yang trying not to look her in the eye. "Come on," the blond said. "It's time for us to go." Turning, she waved to her sister, who smiled and waved back. Then, the blond Vampiress led her raven-haired slave out of the room.

NEW SCENE

"I'm sorry about all this."

Blake looked up. She and Yang had been walking in silence for some time now. They'd stopped in front of a set of closed doors and remained there for five whole minutes before Yang had finally spoken. Beyond the doors, Blake could hear the clanging of pots and pans and the smell of herbs, spices, and meat; it was probably the kitchen.

"You're not the one who's at fault, Yang," the Cat Faunus replied. It was difficult to say; her natural instinct was to rage and yell at this woman for the position she'd put her in. Still, Blake forced herself on. "I understand that you're doing this for your sister, and I can't hold that against you. There was a time when I would have done the same thing for the White Fang, before . . ."

"Before they turned into a pack of crazies?" Yang asked, then cringed. "Sorry, that was bad, but I have to wonder, how long were you in the Fang? From what I understand, they haven't exactly been . . ."

"Sane?" Blake offered.

 _"_ _Respectable_ in a long time."

Blake sighed. "My parents were members of the Fang in the old days; you could say I was born into the organization. After they died, the White Fang became the only family I had lef—" Blake was shocked when a pair of powerful arms wrapped themselves around her. This was the first time she was conscious of the brawler's warm Aura as it enveloped her in a second embrace. "Why . . .?" It was difficult to talk. Partly from the confusion, partly from the warmth that made her inner feline want to stretch out and purr in contentment.

"I'm sorry," Yang said. "I just . . . Ruby and I lost our Mom when we were kids. Kind of makes you sensitive to someone else with similar problems."

"You must have spent a lot of time hugging people then," Blake managed to say. She immediately regretted it, realizing how cruel it sounded, but Yang just laughed.

"Yeah, that's life on Remnant for you, but I also got to hug a lot of people for good stuff, too. So, it wasn't all bad," she said, drawing back and giving the infected Faunus a smile. Blake though it was ironic that a Vampiress should have such a bright, sunny smile.

"Well, that should be enough bad memories to last us both a while," Yang declared. "Let's get started with the tour, shall we?" So saying, she took Blake's hand in her's and led her down the corridor.

NEW SECTION

"And this is the Rec Room," Yang said, as she introduced Blake to the new room. So far, they had seen the kitchen (a room more for the convenience of the slaves than their blood-drinking masters and mistresses), the Gym (where Yang promised they'd practice regularly), the storage area, and the living quarters (not that they'd gone in yet, it was just between the areas used for storage and their current location).

Blake took in the sight. Yang was a far cry from what she'd expected in a Vampire, but the rest of the Coven's hideout had surprised her as well. Blake wasn't certain what she expected of a Vampires' lair; her theories had ranged from living in the sewers like rats, a theory she had more or less abandoned after meeting Yang and seeing the infirmary, to a life of luxury in the mansion of some aged or diseased slime ball who sponsored the Vampires in exchange for the promise of immortality. This idea had some appeal to it, given who the Coven's Master was. More realistically, she half-expected a militaristic set-up like the White Fang used. Instead, what she'd found was positively . . . homey. It wasn't as extravagant as her mansion idea, but it was better that what she'd left behind.

Take the Rec Room, for instance. It was sparsely furnished, but the furniture looked "well-loved" as opposed to "cheap" and the handful of mostly Human slaves lounging about seemed perfectly content with it: a wide space with three couches, four chairs, and a large rug, none of which went together particularly well. On a table in the middle sat an old, wireless stereo broadcasting a sporting event. Against the wall were a couple of short bookshelves with a tall one in between them.

On instinct, Blake glided over to the books, like a moth to a light. She saw they were mostly paperbacks, some more tattered than others. Looking over the titles, the infected Faunus saw biographies, mysteries, comic books, a guide to origami, an astronomy textbook, trashy romances (she made a special note about those), a birdwatchers' guide to every species of bird native to the continent of Vytal, fairy tales, and a complete encyclopedia (those were the only hard-backed books and looked fairly expensive). The eclectic nature of the collection fit with the furniture and further convinced Blake that, no matter how refined Coven's prissy Master might act, her new "team" was financially strapped.

"See anything you like?"

Blake jumped at the sound of the cultured voice beside her. Turning she saw the rabbit Faunus she'd seen earlier with the Queen's Throne Room. The brown-haired girl still wore the pinkish armor and black tights Blake had wondered at earlier. She was also holding a book in her hands and shuffling a little.

"Not yet," she answered.

The rabbit Faunus smiled. "My name is Velvet," she said, awkwardly offering her hand. "I'm Fox and Coco's slave."

Blake eyed her, raising a single eyebrow. "Do you always introduce yourself as someone's property?"

Velvet dropped her hand. "It's a custom when new slaves arrive . . . to let everyone know who's with who . . ."

"You mean who owns who," Blake corrected.

"Well . . ."

"How can you be so . . . pleasant about it?" Blake asked. Seriously, the woman had _smiled_ as she'd listed her owners. SMILED! What was wrong with her?

"Hey, Blake!" Yang shouted, running up behind the morally outraged Werecat. "Are you hungry? It's kind of late; I'll bet you're hungry! Want to get something to eat?"

Blake ignored her. It wasn't easy; once again, she felt the empathic bond she and Yang shared begin to affect her, filling her with a sense of urgency. It was all Blake could do to keep herself from turning around and walking away. Odd, though, there was something else. Something underneath the desire to leave. It was the feeling that something very, very wrong was happening.

 _"_ _Grrrrrooooowwwwwllllllll."_ It didn't help that Blake hadn't eaten in almost two days, and Yang was suggesting food. It was a good thing the infected Cat Faunus was feeling so indignant at the moment; otherwise she'd have been blushing furiously at the actions of her treacherous stomach. "I can wait," she said, trying to fight down the blush.

Velvet sighed. "There are a lot of different relationships. I'll admit, some of the Vampires are rather unpleasant—especially to their slaves. Most of us, however, have a constructive, amicable relationship with our masters."

"Amicable?" Blake asked. "You're _owned,_ like an _animal._ They can do whatever they want to you! Even eat you! How can you possibly stand up for them?"

"Because they saved my life!" Velvet exploded. She was shaking as she continued, "Because I was accepted by Vampires the way I never was by Mortals . . . by humans OR Faunus."

Blake cocked her head. "What do you mean . . . ? Why weren't you—"

"I'm sorry," Velvet said. "I'm sorry, I . . . I have to go . . ." Turning, she ran down the hall with surprising speed.

"Wait!" Blake yelled, halfheartedly. A fleeing Rabbit-girl was NOT a good thing for a Werebeast to see, especially one whose animal half was already predatory. This close to the Full Moon . . . Blake struggled, but finally managed to shove the growling, raging feline within her back down. She'd probably pay for that later, but it was better than letting the beast out here and now.

The other problem was that Blake wasn't certain what she would say to the fleeing woman. What was there to say? What was up with her? _Was she really unaccepted by her fellow Faunus?_ Granted, there were bullies in every race, Faunus included, but this sounded like more than that. It sounded like the poor girl had been ostracized by her peers. _Why would they do that? Humans I can understand; there are so many who would take one look at her and walk all over her, and there are some Faunus who would do that too, but wouldn't her friends and family stand up for her?_

"Um, Blake?" Yang asked. "Can we go now?"

Blake felt that same tugging she'd felt from Yang earlier and looked around. Now, she could see the other slaves in the room had all stopped listening to the stereo and were looking intently at her. All of them were scowling. Leaving seemed like a good idea.

"Does the kitchen have any tuna?" she asked, walking towards the exit.

Yang took her place beside her, shielding Blake from the glares of the other slaves as well as she could. Blake wouldn't say it out loud, but she was touched, if a little confused. "Not sure," the blond answered. "Never actually asked. Vampire, you know?" she said, flashing her fangs.

"Oh, right, you can't eat or drink anything other than blood, can you?" Blake asked.

"It's possible," Yang said, her voice not as loud as usual. "Drinks are all right, as long as they're not alcoholic. Food's tougher. Meat is easiest, especially if it's raw and red, and that stuff can still twist my stomach into knots if I eat too much. I've heard it helps if you drink a lot of blood before or after. Kind of like heartburn medication, right?"

"I wouldn't know," Blake said. "It's not so bad for Werebeasts; we don't have to worry about alcohol or garlic or the like. Our only real hang-up is that anything other than raw meat loses a lot of its taste. It isn't the same as your problem, but we also have to eat a lot of more calories than normal Faunus because of our odd metabolisms. Can you imagine eating an extra-large meal consisting of unflavored tofu?"

Yang actually laughed. "I guess we aren't that different after all!" she declared, slapping Blake on the back. The Cat-eared Meta stumbled forward under the woman's blow. For a split second, she was furious with this casual violence, before a wave of concern and shame crashed into her. She looked up and saw Yang's expression mirrored the emotions. "Sorry," the blond said. "Sometimes I don't know my own strength."

Blake sighed. She needed to learn to stop immediately assuming the worst in others, especially humans (or post-humans). "It's all right," she said. "I guess I'm still a little weak from . . . everything." That was something she never expected to do again: admit weakness to someone else.

Yang shrugged. "Well, there was something else I needed to talk to you about anyway. Might as well do it now. I noticed you were curious about something earlier."

"Yes, that empathy bond is very annoying," Blake replied, crossing her arms.

"Hey don't blame me for that," Yang said. "Anyway, I'm guessing it's from the looks you were getting from the others in the Rec Room, right?"

 _Close enough,_ Blake thought, trying to control her emotions. Out loud, she replied, "Yes, I get the feeling I said something I shouldn't have."

"Did something is more like it," Yang said. "OK, rule number 1 of living here is this: don't make Velvet cry." The blond frowned for a moment, then amended her statement. "Well, actually rule number 1 is don't piss off anyone you can't beat the snot out of, but rule number 2 is don't make Velvet cry."

"I take it she's popular?" Blake asked.

"Sort of," Yang said. "Mainly, she's just the nicest thing on two legs and as sweet as Atlasian ice cream. Most people around her think upsetting her is kind of like kicking a puppy."

Blake cocked an eyebrow. "I seem to recall her being a part of your fiancé's honor guard. Seems like she should know how to fight."

Yang frowned, though Blake got the feeling that for once, it had nothing to do with Weiss. "Oh, she can. I don't get it either but, she can. You'll see; she trains in the Gym like the rest of us."

NEW SECTION

"Still worried?" Ruby asked her mistress, lying down beside her. It was almost dawn, and the pair had retired to Weiss' room after spending nearly an hour discussing the situation with Coco and her team.

"It makes no sense," Weiss said. Her hands were propping her head up as she continued contemplating the situation. "Why are the White Fang turning so many? I thought it was just to create an army of Werebeasts to throw at us or the Council or whoever their target is, but then why continue these recruitment drives? Why not just capture as many Faunus as possible and bite them?"

"That'd probably make them too angry to work for the Fang," Ruby said. "I mean, look at Yang, how unhappy she is with being a Vampire. Would you want to make an army of that?"

Weiss frowned. "No. Yang is powerful, a formidable ally, but if you weren't here she wouldn't even be making an effort to work with us. An army made of so many similarly-minded, reluctant Metabeings is . . . undesirable. Certainly, it's doubtful they would ever consent to training, and the White Fang we've faced until now have all been trained at least a little."

"So, maybe they are building an army," Ruby suggested. "You know, making anti-Hunter Metabeings!"

"You read too many comic books, dear," Weiss said.

Ruby pouted. "It could happen."

Weiss grimaced. "Perhaps, but I hope it isn't." She sighed. "On an unrelated note," she said, turning to look Ruby in the eyes, "What do you think of this Blake?"

Ruby sighed. Now she leaned back and looked at the ceiling while her beloved watched her. ". . . I think I like her. She doesn't take gruff from anyone, kind of like Yang. She still cares about the people in the Fang, even if she disagrees with their methods, so she's loyal and she has a good heart."

"You don't worry that care and loyalty will make her a danger?" Weiss asked.

"Nope," Ruby said, smiling. "Blake knows what they're doing is bad. She just needs to learn that we're the good guys. Then, she'll be all right with us, and we'll live happily ever-after."

Weiss gave a decidedly un-ladylike snort. "We're hardly angels, Ruby," she said. "We enslave others, we steal the blood of Mortals, and—as much as I try to stop it—not all of our coven are particularly fond of sparing their victims' lives."

"But, you do try, Weiss," Ruby said, looking her lover in the eye. "You try to control it. You punish the ones who break the rules, but you try to be sympathetic to the ones who just can't help themselves; not even the police do that!"

"Damn it, Ruby, if you hadn't been there, I would have killed Ocher. I'd have cut his head off myself and had Fox or someone dump the remains on the police's doorstep. The only reason I didn't was because of you, because I didn't know what you'd think of me if you saw that. As it was, he's still spending over a century in suspended animation!" Under other circumstances, Weiss would be perfectly aware of the irony of her actions; she had spared Ocher to keep Ruby from seeing her as a monster, and now she was trying her best to make her love understand that a monster was all she ever could be. Tired people, however, are not known for making the best decisions.

"Why wouldn't you have Yatsuhashi do it?" Ruby asked. "He was closer, and with that giant sword of his, it would have been easier."

"Because I can't seem squeamish in front of the others," Weiss replied. "And because it's my responsibility as Master of the coven, not his."

"If you wanted to scare people, you could've used Crescent Rose," Ruby said. "My sweetheart's pretty intimidating."

"What?" Weiss cried. "Ruby, that's your weapon! I couldn't use Crescent Rose to do my dirty work! It'd be like . . . like . . . I could never do that, Ruby."

Ruby smiled up at her. "And you didn't, just like you didn't kill him. You did what you had to for us to be safe, Weiss, all of us, and you did it without having to resort to killing." The young woman's eyes were shining now. "You're more like an angel than you realize. You try so hard to hold on to your morals, even when it's hard. And in spite of all the nasty stuff you have to say about the others, I know you'll fight tooth and fang to protect them, slaves and mortals and Vampires alike. Because that's what you do, Weiss, you protect us. " Ruby blushed. "I think that's one of the reasons I like Blake; she reminds me of you."

 _All the more reason not to trust her,_ Weiss thought. She considered explaining that was why they should be worried about Blake betraying them to the White Fang or this all being some kind of elaborate trick, but now was not the time for that. Instead, she gave Ruby a predatory smile. "Is that so? Well, perhaps I should be concerned about just how fond of this new girl you are."

"What? Weiss, what are you talking about?" Ruby asked, squirming at the look Weiss gave her. She was intimately familiar with that look. "Come on, you know I love you."

Ironically, given they were discussing a Werecat, Weiss purred. "I know, Ruby, but I think I should remind you why you love me." Then, she was kissing her, a strong, long kiss that made Ruby's toes tingle and her body go limp.

"Weeeeeiiiiiss . . ." the girl moaned as her mistress drew back.

"Ruuuubbbyyyyyy," Weiss replied, still smiling but looking hungrier. Much hungrier. The white-haired Vampiress leaned forward and kissed her beloved again, this time, drawing Ruby's shirt up over her head.

Ruby still blushed at the thought of being seen in her bra, but she couldn't deny that the look on Weiss' face made the blush easy to ignore. It was her eyes; the way they stared at Ruby, sparkling with playfulness that others rarely got to see, if ever. Smiling, the russet-haired girl reached up and began unbuttoning her mistress' shirt, kissing each inch of exposed flesh as she did so. Her kisses ended at Weiss' waist, and Ruby straitened up to push the shirt from Weiss' shoulders. The expression on Weiss' was one of the most beautiful things on Remnant. The Vampiress' eyes were closed, her head tilted back just slightly, and the faintest shade of pink tinged her cheeks. Ruby grinned at her accomplishment, then leaned up to peck Weiss on the nose.

Awakening from her Ruby-induced stupor, Weiss immediately pounced on the girl, pushing the slave-girl down and kissing her lips in an almost violent display of passion. The russet-headed girl responded just as fiercely, snaking her arms around her mistress' back and pulling her closer. Weiss' hands were busy too, pulling Ruby's skirt down below her knees, where the eager concubine kicked it off. Ruby responded in kind, shoving Weiss' skirt down far enough for the Vampiress to climb out of it.

The two broke their kiss then. Ruby was panting and blushing; no matter how many times Weiss had seen her totally naked or vice-versa, she always felt a little . . . odd at the thought of seeing one another in their underwear. She had to admit, though, that Weiss looked great: a white, lacy panties and bra set that probably cost more than Ruby's whole wardrobe. The fact that Weiss was seeing her in red versions of the same outfit only made it worse. It was seduction in its purest form.

Of course, Weiss without her clothes looked great too. More than that, Weiss was perfect. Ruby loved touching every inch of Weiss' skin, as smooth and soft as cotton, covering surprisingly hard muscles. The Vampiress' figure was the same way, every inch of her body blend seamlessly into the next. Add to that the more intimate details, like perky, pink nipples, her cute little butt, and the tiny tuft of silky, white hair just above her slit . . . Add to _that_ the look on Weiss' face, sometimes hungry lust, sometimes smoldering seduction, and sometimes pure, adoring love, and Ruby was often star-struck by the sight of her beloved.

Weiss, meanwhile, struggled to understand just what Ruby saw in her. She had a pretty face, yes, but it was marred by the scar on her left eye, a memento from . . . another time. Her hips were almost nonexistent, and her "breasts" hardly seemed worthy of the name: more like raised bumps of fat on her chest. To top it all off, she was short. Weiss was fairly certain her appearance was the result of her own "unusual" genetics, but that didn't make her feel any more comfortable with the idea that she could and had passed as high schooler on more than one occasion.

Ruby, on the other hand . . . _wow._ Even when she was clothed in a simple slave's dress, the girl's natural form and boundless energy was enticing. In the red lingerie Weiss had acquired for her, she childish girl became a born seductress. On the other hand, Weiss thought, unclasping her favorite Human's bra, Ruby was at her most beautiful naked. The russet-haired girl had full, beautiful breasts (not as big as her sister's, but that would have looked ridiculous on Ruby's smaller body). Likewise, Ruby lacked Yang's bulk, but made up for it with an enticing mix of lean muscle and soft curves. That was ignoring the best part: her head. The red/black hair, the adorable crew-cut, the soft, childlike shape of her face, and her eyes . . . those big, expressive silver pools that radiated innocence and trust and yet also desire and eagerness, and a love Weiss knew she would never deserve . . . and that faint pinkness that colored her cheeks even after all they'd been through together . . . It was no wonder she could barely keep her hands off her beloved slave-girl when they were like this.

Wait, why was she trying to keep her hands off Ruby?

Weiss pounced, clamping her mouth around the Mortal girl's breast, slicing into it with her fangs. Above her, Ruby moaned as Weiss' tongue lapped up her blood, while stimulating the nipple and areola.

They spent the next hour or so performing similar activities. Weiss partook of both Ruby's blood and more intimate juices, drinking the toxic fluids, fluids that would be poison to anyone Mortal but were safe, nutritious even (well, the blood was), to a creature immune to all known diseases.

It made Ruby only more eager to return the favor.

NEW SCENE

Velvet was dragging her feet back to the room she shared with her master, mistress, and brother-slave, Yatsuhashi. It was right next to Mistress Weiss and Ruby's room. Convenient for a team of bodyguards, and considered something of an honor among the Coven.

At the moment, Velvet didn't feel honored. She felt like she was a teenager again, dealing with all the angst she thought she had left behind when she'd joined the Coven. The new girl, Blake, wasn't a bully, at least, not like that brute, Cardin Winchester—Velvet had heard he'd graduated Signal and was now a Captain on a team in Beacon. How?—but she brought up unpleasant memories of her own family. Of the siblings she'd grown up with. How, they'd tried to "help" her, to be understanding, or to make her understand that she was a wrong. Or a freak. Or a betrayer of all Faunus.

Velvet was so lost in her own thoughts. That she was basically walking on autopilot, so she didn't notice that she'd stopped in front of the door to "her" room until said door flew open and she was yanked inside by Coco. The fashion maven pulled her into a kiss that left her lips bruised and to which the Rabbit-eared Faunus could only reply, "Wha . . . what?"

Coco pulled back. She'd removed her beret, sunglasses, scarf, and necklaces making her appear younger and more vital. Behind her, Velvet could see Fox and Yatsuhashi standing a few feet apart, sans armor. The female blood-drinker smiled, showing off her fangs in that kitschy, Vampire way that she loved. "Come on, Vel," she said. "Don't tell me those lovely ears of yours are going deaf . . ."

It was at this point that Velvet snapped out of her own self-imposed isolation from the world. Now that her mind was clear, she could hear what was going on in the next room: Weiss and Ruby's room. Instantly, her ears burned and her face flushed at the sounds of the Coven's Mistress and her slave making love. Even without her superior hearing, she should have heard that. They were so _loud._

"You didn't hear this?" Yatsuhashi, the only one in their group limited to human hearing, asked. Despite his size, his voice was quiet and even. He took a couple steps forward, brining himself closer without invading anyone's space.

Coco, meanwhile, pulled back from Velvet, albeit keeping her hands on the Faunus girls' waist. Coco wasn't wearing her sunglasses now, so Velvet could see the Vampiress' brown eyes running up and down her form. "What's wrong," she asked.

". . . It's nothing," Velvet replied.

"It made you cry," Fox said. Even before becoming a Vampire, his blindness had left his sense of smell well-above Human average. Multiplied as it was by his transformation, Fox had probably smelled her out this instant she had entered the room. "That isn't nothing."

Coco frowned. "Who did this?" she asked. Leaning forward, she began sniffing Velvet's form. "That Werebeast Yang has?" This time, her question was a growl. "What did she do?"

Velvet gulped. "That's not . . . It's difficult . . . She just . . . brought up bad memories."

"From before?" Fox asked, walking up beside his mate. Coco, looking more like a security-chief and less like a primed attack-dog, stepped aside to allow him in.

Velvet nodded in reply, then remembered who she was speaking with and said, "Yes."

Coco smiled in a way that she usually reserved for Grimm. "Maybe we should speak with the new girl about proper manners in the Coven."

Behind her, Yatsuhashi began stretching his limbs out. Velvet knew he had no intention of causing real pain to Blake (she wasn't an enemy and was a woman to boot), but it was still an impressive display.

"Please don't," the Faunus whispered.

"Velvet," Coco growled. "If you're about to say this isn't worth it . . ."

"It's not that . . . Well, it is . . . what I mean is . . ." The stuttering girl swallowed. "I don't need that right now . . . I need . . ."

"You need?" Coco asked. Cocking her head to the side, the brunette Vampiress instantly morphed into a picture of faux-innocent curiosity. Beside her, Fox grinned, stepping closer to Velvet. Close enough for the Faunus girl to feel his breath on her skin.

Velvet was accustomed to this game. Enough so to know that they wouldn't let her go without answering them. Blushing intensely (and she could see how that appealed to her Master and Mistress so much; even Yatsuhashi looked interested, despite his valiant attempts to remain stoic). ". . . You . . ." she finally replied, raising her hands in front of her.

It was Fox who responded fist. Smiling like his namesake. "As you wish, little slave . . ." he said, capturing her wrists in his own, stronger grip. The blind Vampire slammed her against the wall, kissing her lips with twice the ferocity of Coco earlier, nipping them slightly with his Fangs.

For Velvet, it marked the first steps on the well-trod path into Heaven . . .

* * *

 **Lexicon: Covens (cont.)**

Occasionally the question is posed by young Hunters, why to Vampires form covens? Surely, it only increases their chances of being found-for how many places could conceal large numbers of Metabeings in a single city?-as well as the competition for food. The answer is protection. A Vampire without a coven is without protection from Hunters, must search for victims alone, and risks running afoul of Vampires who have chosen to band together to protect "their" territory. Covenless Vampires must either live nomadic lives in the cities, constantly changing their hunting and sleeping areas to avoid detection or they must live outside the protection of the Kingdoms, where they are vulnerable to Werebeasts, Grimm, and other monsters. Thus, a Vampire will remain with a Coven even when they find coven life inconvenient or uncomfortable simply because there are no better options.

Unless of course, they kill the Master and take its place.

* * *

 **Author's Note: You know, until I scrolled down here, I didn't realize I'd repeated the "Heaven . . ." thing in my Author's note.**

 **You just scrolled back up to check, didn't you?**

 **I'm sure someone will ask me if 100 Vampires plus another 100 slaves is too many to logically conceal in a single city. I'm going to do this in the story later, but let me throw you a bone right now and do some math. We don't know how big Vale is, so I decided to use real world cities for comparison. According to Wikipedia, in 2014 censuses New York City was the largest city in the U.S., but was only the 21st largest in the world. It has a population of about 8.5 million. That seems like a good baseline number to compare the cities in Remnant to, especially when various official media has shown that the majority of Remnant is covered by Grimm. Vampires only live in the Northern half of Vale, but compare 100 Vampires + 100 slaves + Team RWBY, Team CFVY, and Ocher to half of 8.5 million. Does 209 really seem like that many in comparison to 4,250,000?**

 **You know, I originally intended the trial scene to end with Weiss cutting off Ocher's head and quoting O-Ren's speech from _Kill Bill_ (fun fact, Weiss "two breaths" line is stolen from Rudyard Kipling's _Jungle Book_ stories. Only there, it's Mowgli telling Akela how to speak of him and Man. Seriously, I hope this new Jungle Book movie will be good. It looks good, I'm excited about the idea of King Louie-who was an addition of Disney's by the way-being a prehistoric ape and a lot meaner than in the stories, but I really can't help but be disappointed by the idea that they're STILL making Kaa a bad guy! Or girl. I don't care if he's a she! Kaa is Mowgli's friend Disney! What's so bad about a snake friend! If Kipling could pull it off in the Nineteenth century, why can't you do it in the Twentieth or the Twenty-first?)**

 **Boy, did I digress. Anyway, I changed my mind because I had trouble rationalizing the action with my beliefs as a Christian and a person about the Death Penalty. So I opted to give Ocher one more chance. And, I'm happy I did because now I get to reveal more about Vampire biology (I bet you're all just dying to know what the Prison of Water is, by the way, that was a title I borrowed from the TV series, _Kindred the Embraced,_ except they used a "Prison of Light," man, I am such a nerd.) And, I like Ocher, I think he may become a useful character later on down the line.**

 **P.S.**

 **"Ocher" is a shade of Yellow or orange and he has orange hair, this fits the "Color Naming Rule" as spelled out by Mounty Oum himself according to the RWBY wiki.**


	6. Chapter 6: Omake 1

**Author's Note: Warning, I am posting this the same day (well night, it's 10 p.m. here on the East Coast) as I am posting Chapter 5! If you just scrolled to the bottom of the options on the chapter selection, hit the back button! Not only will you miss out, you might be confused by the location of this scene as well as it's ending. I am posting it this way because it always annoyed me whenever author's posted omake's instead of chapters, so I decided to post these two together.**

 **If you have read Chapter 5, sit back, relax, and enjoy my very first omake ever!**

* * *

 **Omake:**

"Now, let's see, which one should I read today?" Ruby asked herself as she perused the comics section of the Rec Room's bookshelf. Ruby had a fondness for Hunters, superheroes, and the like. She'd already memorized the titles on the shelf and had read most of them. Still, she'd never had any problem with rereading stories before, and going over the titles helped her choose.

 _X-Ray and Vav:_ The adventures of a pair of idiots with highly advanced technology courtesy of their scientist friend, and highly underdeveloped brains courtesy of themselves.

 _Red vs. Blue:_ Two highly dysfunctional squads of soldiers fighting against one another, aliens, and robots. Supposedly it was based off some video game that Ruby'd never heard of but was apparently hugely popular.

 _Wildcat:_ A professional fighter-turned street vigilante-turned mentor of heroes? Tempting, but there were times when it just made Ruby think of Beacon and what might have been. Then, she just got a massive headache and now was not the time for such things.

 _Green Lantern:_ Dude gets a magical ring that basically did whatever the plot needed it to? Yes, there was a certain goofy charm to it, and Ruby had always loved the fact that Allen Scott was a lefty, like her.

 _Blade the Vampire Hunter:_ How'd that even get here? She occasionally wondered. The basic set up was a rouge Huntsman who specialized in slaying Vrykolakae. Ironically for a comic with a minority protagonist (in Vytal, anyway) it was really racist. Then again, nobody really liked Metas. The only interesting thing about the comic (as far as Ruby was concerned) was that Blade was some kind of Vampire-human hybrid. She'd asked Weiss about it once, but her Mistress had insisted such a thing was impossible.

 _Superman:_ the last survivor of an alien world, gifted wondrous powers beyond the abilities of Aura and Semblance by Remant's sun. Ruby liked the idea, but ever since the character had died and been resurrected, they'd abandoned all pretense of consistent limitations to his powers, which were even more incoherent than ring-guy's.

 _Batman:_ The orphaned son of a rich couple who used his family fortune, to battle gangsters, monsters, and supervillains.

 _Wonderwoman:_ The princess of the Amazons, a race of superhuman warrior women, leaves her island paradise to bring enlightenment to "Man's World." Good premise, but Ruby preferred the original stories

 _Aquaman:_ King of an underwater city. Dealt with Pirates, Aquatic Grimm, Sea-faring Metabeings, and Maritime supervillains.

 _Ironman:_ A billionaire weapons designer survives a terrorist attack and becomes a robot-suit wearing, smart-mouthed hero? Why not? It was interesting, at least in theory, to see a hero who relied solely on Dust and technology and not Aura and Semblance. Still, Ruby was a lover of Huntresses (and Huntsmen), so the invincible Ironman had never really been anything more than a curiosity. At least to her.

 _Hawkman and Hawkwoman:_ A pair of eternally reincarnating lovers, cursed to watch each other die again and again throughout history. Not a bad gimmick, if a little too tragic in the Rose child's opinion. On the other hand, they had alien stuff!

 _Guardians of the Galaxy:_ The adventures of a band of semi-heroic outlaws getting into and out of trouble in deep space. Outer space fascinated much of Remnant, especially one far away star that astronomers said was orbited by a planet capable of supporting life . . .

 _Sargent Rock:_ Pretty much the exact opposite of _Guardians,_ a historical comic, focused on a made-up regiment who took part in Remnant's last war. It was more of a cult-favorite, given its somber and unflinching tone. Ruby was have surprised to see even a single issue in the coven's collection.

 _Captain America:_ A time-lost, idealistic soldier trying to make his way as a hero in the modern world, very much the opposite of _Rock._

 _The Fantastic Four:_ A comic about explorers getting mutated by weird space radiation. Classic idea. Yet, somehow, the world at large had never really given it the same love as say, Batman.

 _Dr. Strange:_ Magic. Now, there was something. Ancient peoples believed Aura, Semblance, and Dust were magic, but there were still authors today who liked to tell stories of occultists who mastered forces beyond the ken or mortal men to perform feats no act of science or Aura could reproduce. Yeah, fantasy was probably Ruby's third greatest genre-love.

So deciding she picked up the issue and lay down on the couch to read. Weiss occasionally worried about her being out and about without her, but Ruby didn't think anyone would be dumb enough to try to hurt the Master's pet. Besides, she couldn't go back to their room at the moment. Not while the noises coming from the room next door didn't seem to be letting up.

 _Four hours,_ Ruby thought. _Who can do it for FOUR hours?_

* * *

 **Author's Note: Yes, we will be discussing Team CFVY's lifestyle next chapter. Sit tight, you perverts (he said, hypocritically).**

 **This chapter was basically a thought experiment on my part. Ever since "The Best Day Ever" I've wondered what content comicbooks (particularly superhero comics) on Remnant would be like in a world where Hunters exist and basically ARE superheros. I mentioned this to my Beta, who responded with "I believe they would be the same as the ones like ours from Superman, Batman and Ironman, Spider-man, etc. Kickass is another have no auras because if they had one then they would probably be seen as hunters and huntresses instead." I mostly agreed, but added a few more.**

 **Batman, Ironman and their ilk (Green Arrow, Hawkeye, Blue Beetle, etc.) are obvious, although they might very well be trained in the use of Aura and Semblance. I view Aura and Semblance as being mostly psionic in nature, so anyone with very physical and/or genetic powers could also make the cut (Mr. Fantastic, the Thing, Aquaman and Wonder woman because they're not human or Faunus, possibly Wolverine and Beast although they might be more easily construed with Faunus) are also good. Magic is always good for stories where characters do things scientifically impossible (hint, hint, something to watch out for later). I could also hypothetically use the " feats no act of science or Aura could reproduce" line or "impossibly advanced Semblances" to include heroes like the Flash, but I figure that would be pushing it, and it's probably a technique that hypothetical writers in Remnant would use sparingly. Superman gets in because he's an alien, and he can do too many things for one Semblance and is too strong compared to "normal" Aura-users (basically because he's Superman). Since theme comics like Space or War stories exist in our world, so it's safe to say versions of them would exist in Remnant. Stories of Vampires Hunters could work because there are detective comics (Yay! a pun! Yang would be so proud!) and stories of urban vigilantes in our world and this is basically the same thing. _X-Ray and Vav_ and _Red vs. Blue_ get on the list because they're also Rooster Teeth productions Monty was involved with and because they already make cameos in the show.**

 **Runners up for this list included the X-men (only a few of them fit the "physical mutations resulting in superpowers criteria), the Challengers of the Unknown (couldn't sufficiently distinguish them from Hunters, still a comic for them might exist), Ironfist (same reason, especially since the idea of a super-powered martial artist would basically be co-opted by Wildcat on Remnant) Daredevil (again, same reasoning as the last two) again might exist with the right writers the Suicide Squad (the World War II version of the team, nixed because I already had two war comics, three counting _Red vs. Blue_ ), Hellboy (I wanted to limit it to Marvel and DC, besides, I think a story about a demon would NOT go over well in a world where Grimm and Metabeings exist. Blade only gets by because he kills the things and has the more exotic angle of being half-Vampire).**

 **Thanks for coming on this journey with me.**

 **Fun fact, the reference to Earth in the _Guardians of the Galaxy_ blurb is not my original idea. The idea of our sun being visible as a star to Remnant was taken from another story. I believe it was _The Lonesome Road,_ by CakeLegends, but I can't be sure. Still, the Impossible Girl Series is another one worth checking out if you're interested. Also, while I'm shilling for my favorite stories, read TheDraigg's series starting with _The Sounds of Vale._ They're absolutely hilarious and genuinely touching. **


	7. Act 1: Chapter 6

**Author's Note: Still alive, Baby! Sorry this took so long. Thanks again to my beta, Mr. Stark357. Enjoy.**

 **P.S. I encourage anyone looking for inspiration or a short read to check out my newest bit of weirdness: "Story Ideas: To a Good Home." Basically, it's where I put short opening chapters to ideas I have that I either don't have time to flesh out into full stories or can't think of what to do with the ideas.**

 **Also, check out the other version of "RWBY: Stars in the Night" published by Donnchadh Bracken. It's a prequel giving his idea of how Yang got drafted into joining the Legion of the Undead. Is it canon: don't know, but it's kind of fun. Give it a read!**

 **P.P.S. I realized that in the Omake that "Captain America" probably doesn't make a lot of sense on Remnant. Oops.**

* * *

 **Act I: Shadows Within Shadows**

 **Chapter 6: Secrets shared**

"C'mon Blake. You're gonna want to see this, trust me." Yang led the Werecat up the stairs, past the disapproving guards. The blond tried to ignore the warm feelings she got holding Blake's hand. Too bad the bond was probably broadcasting it loud and clear.

"Mind telling me where we're going?" The raven-haired girl asked.

Blake looked around the walkway. They were pressed up against a mountain. Off to the West, she could make out something that looked like a castle on the peak of a cliff. "Wait a minute . . . Is that Beacon Academy?" she asked.

Yang smiled her self-effacing smile. "Yep. I went there for almost a year, and I never realized I could see a Vampire fortress from my dorm room. I think. I can't actually remember what the angles were . . ."

"Yang," Blake said, trying to get the Vampire back on topic, "where are we? If that's Beacon, then isn't that wall behind us the KINGDOM Wall?"

"Yep," Yang said. "I asked about that too when I first arrived. Apparently this whole place used to be a military prison. They thought putting against the Kingdom Wall would make people happier about staying in their cells. Supposedly it ended pretty badly though."

"Fort Leaven-Worth," Blake whispered. "I've heard of it. The negative emotions of the prisoners and their guards (who weren't fond of fellow soldiers and Hunters who broke the rules) attracted large numbers of Grimm. They began laying siege to the Kingdom, until the Council discerned the root of the problem and moved the prison."

"Moved the inmates is more like it," Yang shrugged. "Couldn't exactly move the fort, could they? The Coven moved in after that. Changed the cells into rooms, rebuilt the mess hall and the infirmary, and had their slaves buy some pillows and lamps and things. That was before the Ice Queen was Master, so I don't think there's anyone still alive who knows all the details. Still, it's better than living in the sewers or a cave. Well, it's kind of like a cave, but with indoor plumbing, you know?"

Blake nodded. Now she understood how so many Vrykolakae could be hiding in one place unnoticed. This area of Vale was something of a ghetto; it still hadn't totally recovered from the siege. In fact, she thought as she gazed at the surrounding buildings, the Fort might be the best place to stay for miles. "Where does power come from then?" she asked.

"They got a couple of the old generators to run," Yang said. "That only powers the lights and some of the stuff in the Mess Hall and the Infirmary. We use batteries for everything else."

"And water?" Blake asked.

Yang shifted, "Well, uh . . .that's a bit more complicated."

"Let me guess; you tapped into the kingdom's water and sewer systems?"

"Well, yeah. A little, just the sewers, I think. We have our own source of water on site." At Blake's look she clarified. "There's an underground stream; it runs under the Fort and connects to the Kingdom's main pipes."

Blake nodded. Again, she was reluctantly impressed with the Vampires. The White Fang hadn't had nearly this nice a setup. "I'm surprised the Council hasn't moved to have this place secured, if there's a water source running under it."

Yang shrugged. "I hear that some slaves work in the Utilities Department. Maybe that has something to do with it."

Blake frowned at the reminder of her situation. Another thought occurred to her, though. "Yang, how is there enough food to feed all the slaves? Do all of them still work jobs? Wouldn't that draw attention? I mean, there must be missing persons reports for most of them."

"Actually, a bunch of slaves were homeless before they were enslaved," Yang said. "Or they were travelers, or the survivors of some nasty occurrence or another." She shrugged. "Not many people to miss them. Besides, only a few actually work, I think. Some of them are let out to shop occasionally, but not the ones people would notice. As for money, a few people had money of their own, and a few Vamps had cash hordes. They say the Ice Queen is loaded, but I don't know." Yang looked off to the horizon again. "Oh, look, here it comes."

"Here what—" Blake's thoughts were cut off as she felt Yang's excitement through the bond. It was powerful, nostalgic and triumphant, hopeful and longing. Blake turned to see what had her so worked up.

The Sun was peaking over the edge of the horizon.

Blake panicked. "What are you doing? The Sun's rising! Are you crazy?" Yang was just grinning at her like a loon. Blake pushed against the Vampire, trying to shove her back into the shadows. Was this Vampire suicidal? Blake was fairly certain she couldn't feel depression over the bond, if anything the Vampire was eager and a little confused. So, was the blond just insane?

The light struck Yang's face, and Blake felt the burning sensation as it danced across the blonde's exposed skin. Blake shoved harder, actually forcing Yang back a few steps. Blake felt a pair of strong arms on her shoulders.

"Blake, calm down."

Blake looked up at the voice to see Yang looking down at her. Calm, smiling Yang looking down at her with concern despite the fact that Blake wasn't the one who burst into flames in sunlight.

Except Yang wasn't burning at all. In fact she was . . . glowing?

Blake blinked once. Twice. She stopped shoving Yang to rub her eyes. Yang was not on fire. Yang was glowing. Yang was casually violating one of the most basic tenants of Vampire lore. "Yang . . . What?"

Yang tilted her head to the side. "It's my Aura," she said. "I have a heat-based one—goes with the hot bod, you know?" Here she struck a sexy pose. "I can handle sunlight for a little while."

Blake frowned. "Yang, I can feel you burning—wait, you're healing yourself as you're burned?"

Yang frowned. "Oh, yeah. I forgot about that." She stepped back into the shadows. "Is this better?"

"It's . . ." The Werecat was conflicted. On the one hand, she was no longer in pain, on the other, this obviously meant a lot to Yang, being able to experience the sunlight. "You like it, don't you? The sunlight."

"Well, yeah," Yang said. "It makes me feel human again."

"What about the burning?"

Yang shrugged. "I'm a tough girl. If being able to walk around during the day is painful, fair trade; it's not like I stay up here all day. Besides, I know every other bloodsucker in the coven would kill to be able to do it." Grinning, she pointed a thumb at herself. "I'm the only Daywalker around; I think that's why the Ice Bitch is so keen on hooking up with me?"

Blake looked back out on the vista of the city. Her eyes honed in on Beacon. The home of Hunters in training and some of the deadliest full-fledged Hunters in the world. A Bullhead flew from Beacon into the mountains, right over the pair's heads. Blake swallowed. This felt a little like tempting fate.

* * *

The two Vampires escorted Ocher by his chains. They wore gloves to protect themselves, but it didn't look like it was necessary. Perhaps because his near execution was still so fresh in his mind, the convicted Vampire was coming peacefully. He made no sound nor offered any resistance as he approached The Prison of Water.

During the siege of the Grimm, the subterranean walls of Fort Leaven-Worth had been damaged, and one of the underground storage areas had been flooded. This was quite the boon to the Vampires. Not only did it limit their dependence on water stolen from the Kingdom's water system, it provided a handy place to keep trouble-makers they weren't ready to kill.

The trio stopped at the edge of the pool. The guards removed the chains from their prisoner, then pushed him in. The duo watched as Ocher descended, just to make sure he didn't merge with the stone floor or shadows to escape.

He didn't. Ocher knew that even if he wasn't so weakened by the silver, he couldn't have escaped. It would have meant signing his own death warrant with the kind-hearted Master. His undead body sank like a stone, so much less buoyant in water than a human's. One of the reasons this prison was so effective at containing his kind. The other: although Vampires didn't need oxygen to survive, they did need it to function. As Ocher sank, blackness ate away at his vision, his body going into torpor to maintain energy and spare him the insanity of being conscious but immobile. He reconsidered his plans; he would have his revenge on the white-haired bitch and all she cared about. Her insult to the Vampire race would be swept aside like trash in the streets. He would be Master, and all of Vale would know it.

His guards walked out of the room, unaware that his dreams were filled with blood and terror.

* * *

 **Author's Notes: Sorry that was a little short, and that there was no Lexicon. Sometimes, things just sort of explain themselves.**

 **Well, now we know what the Prison of Water is all about! More stuff I stole from _Shadowrun!_**

 **And, the coven's address is finally revealed. I should probably explain how Vampires work in this universe. To use comparisons to popular culture, the Vampires here operate more like those of _Penny Dreadful_ or _Buffy the Vampire Slayer_ than the ones in _Twilight,_ _Being Human,_ or whatever your preferred Vampire story is. Or the Immortals in _Highlander,_ come to think of it. They're reclusive creatures, hiding out underground (literally), making do with whatever creature comforts they can steal or scavenge, and only emerging from their shelters to feed and recruit. They don't live double lives, working normal jobs, dealing with bills, having human friends who don't know their secrets, and otherwise pretending to be human. In those universes, Vampires' (and Immortals') existence is kept secret. In this world, however, the public is aware that Vampires exist and view them as threat to be dealt with . . . with extreme prejudice. Most businesses and public places likely have systems to warn them when a Vampire tries to enter and will alert the authorities the instant it happens. Granted, the existence of mortal slaves gives the vamps a little extra leeway, but the slaves have to be careful they aren't found out or everyone will be in trouble.**

 **So, an abandoned prison in a rough neighborhood is one of the best places for Vamps to make their home. It has lots of rooms (read: cells) for people to live in, a built-in mess hall and kitchen, rooms for socialization, and a place to keep the guns. Yes, the Fort's name is inspired by Fort Leavenworth.**


End file.
